BiRKE!     vX 

LIBRARY    I 

JNIVERSITY  OF     j 
CALIFORNIA    J 


HISTORY 


AND 


COMPREHENSIVE   DESCRIPTION 


OF 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY 

VIRGINIA 


BY 


JAMES  W.  HEAD 

If 


PARK   VIEW   PRESS 


Copyright  igo8 
by  JAMES  W.  HEAD 


LOAN  STACK 


TO 

WHOSE  LOVE  FOR 

AND   UNDYING   1 

THE     SINGLE 

ACHIEVI 

IS 

l9ebttatton« 

MY    MOTHER, 

LOUDOUN  IS   NOT   LESS  ARDENT 
rHAN   MY  OWN,   THIS   VOLUME, 

AMBITION    AND    FONDEST 
:MENT     of     MY     LIFE, 
AFFECTIONATELY 

DEDICATED. 

627 


5I0UD0UN  County  exemplifies  country 
life  in  about  the  purest  and  pleasantest 
form  that  I  have  yet  found  in  the 
United  States.  Not  that  it  is  a  rural 
Utopia  by  any  means,  but  the  chief 
ideals  of  the  life  there  are  practically 
identical  with  those  that  have  made  country  life  in 
the  English  counties  world-famous.  As  a  type,  this 
is,  in  fact,  the  real  thing.  No  sham,  no  artificiality, 
no  suspicion  of  mushroom  growth,  no  evidence  of 
exotic  forcing  are  to  be  found  in  lyoudoun,  but  the 
culmination  of  a  century's  development." 

"So  much,  then,  to  show  briefly  that  I^oudoun 
County  life  is  a  little  out  of  the  ordinary,  here  in 
America,  and  hence  worth  talking  about.  There  are 
other  communities  in  Virginia  and  elsewhere  that  are 
worthy  of  eulogy,  but  I  know  of  none  that  surpasses 
Ivoudoun  in  the  dignity,  sincerity,  naturalness,  com- 
pleteness and  genuine  success  of  its  country  life." — 
WAIyTER  A.  DYER,  in  Country  Life  in  America. 


CONTENTS 


(Fable  of  Cotttenta. 


Pages. 

Introduction 9-14 

Situation 15-16 

Boundaries 16-18 

Topography 18-20 

Comparative  Ai^titudes 21-22 

Drainage 22-25 

C1.1MATE 25-26 

GE01.0GY 26-44 

Summar) 26-3O 

Granite 30 

lyoudoun  Formation 3O-32 

Weverton  Sandstone 32-34 

Newark  System 34-36 

Newark  Diabase 36-38 

Catoctin  Schist 38-39 

Rocks  of  the  Piedmont  Plain 39-40 

Lafayette  Formation 40-41 

Metamorphism 41-44 

MiNERAi,  AND  Kindred  Deposits 44-49 

Soii,s 49-66 

Summary 49-52 

lyoudoun  Sandy  lyoam 53-54 

PennClay .54-55 

Penn  Stony  Loam 55-56 

Iredell  Clay  Loam 56-58 

Penn  Loam 58-59 

Cecil  Loam 59-60 

Cecil  Clay 60-62 


6  CONTENTS 

Pages. 

Soils— Continued . 49-66 

Cecil  Silt  Loaui 62-63 

Cecil  Mica  Loam 63-64 

De  Kalb  Stony  I^oam 64-65 

Porters  Clay 65-66 

Meadow 66 

Fi,ORA  AND  Fauna 67-69 

Flora 67-68 

Fauna 68-69 

Transportation  Facii^itiks. 69-71 

Towns  and  Vii.i.ages 71-79 

Leesburg 71-74 

Round  Hill 74-75 

Waterford 75 

Hamilton 75 

Purcellville 75-76 

Middleburg 76 

Ashburn 76 

Bluemont 76-77 

Smaller  Towns 77-79 

Area  and  Farming  Tabui^ations 8I-83 

P0PU1.AT10N 83-87 

Industries 87-91 

Farm  Vai^ues 91-93 

Live  Stock 94-97 

Values 94 

Animals  Sold  and  Slaughtered 94 

Neat  cattle 95 

Dairy  Products 95-96 

Steers 96 

Horses,  Mules,  etc 96 

Sheep,  Goats,  and  Swine 96-97 


CONTENTS 


lyivK  Stock — Continued 94-97 

Domestic  Wool 97 

Poultry  and  Bees 97 

Soil.  Products 98-100 

Values 98 

Corn  and  Wheat 98 

Oats,  Rye,  and  Buckwheat 98-99 

Hay  and  Forage  Crops 99 

Miscellaneous  Crops,  etc 99 

Orchard  Fruits,  etc 100 

Small  Fruits,  etc 100 

Flowers,  Ornamental  Plants,  etc 100 

Farm  Labor  and  FejrtiIvIzkrs 101-102 

Labor 101 

Fertilizers 101-102 

Education  and  Rejligion 102-105 

Education 102-104 

Religion 104-105 

Formation 107-109 

Derivation  of  Name 109-110 

SettivEment  and  Personnei. 110-113 

EarIvY  Habits,  Customs,  and  Dress II3-I23 

Habits 113-115 

Customs 116-120 

Dress 120-123 

French  and  Indian  War 123-124 

Representation. .124-127 

Colonial  Assemblies 124-125 

State  Conventions 125-127 

The  REV01.UT10N 127-138 

Loudoun's  Loyalty 127 

Resolutions  of  Loudoun  County 127-129 


8  CONTENTS 


The  Revolution — Continued 127  138 

Revolutionary  Committees 130-131 

Soldiery 131-132 

Quaker  Non-Participation 132-133 

Loudoun's  Revolutionary  Hero 133-134 

Army  Recommendations 134-135 

Court  Orders  and  Reimbursements 135-137 

Close  of  the  Struggle 13^ 

War  OP  1812 138-139 

The  Compelling  Cause. .138-139 

State  Archives  at  Leesburg 139 

The  Mason-McCarty  Duel 140 

Home  of  President  Monroe •  .  .141-142 

General  Lafayette's  Visit 142-144 

Mexican  War 144 

Secession  and  Civil  War 145-180 

Loudoun  County  in  the  Secession  Movement.  .145-148 

Loudoun's  Participation  in  the  War 149-151 

The  Loudoun  Rangers  (Federal) 151-153 

Mosby's  Command  in  its  Relationship  to  Lou- 
doun County 153-157 

Mosby  at  Hamilton  (Poem) 157 

Battle  of  Leesburg  (^'Ball's  Bluff") 158-I64 

Munford's  Fight  at  Leesburg 164-1 65 

Battle  at  Aldie 165-169 

Duffie  at  Middleburg 169-171 

The  Sacking  of  Loudoun 171-174 

Home  Life  During  the  War 174-175 

Pierpont's  Pretentious  Administration 176-177 

Emancipation 177-179 

Close  of  the  War 179-180 

Reconstruction I80-I86 

After  the  Surrender I8O-I83 

Conduct  of  the  Freedmen I83-I86 

Conclusion 1 86 


Sntrnbuatott, 


KNOW  not  when  I  first  planned  this  work,  so 
inextricably  is  the  idea  interwoven  with  a 
fading  recollection  of  my  earliest  aims  and  am- 
bitions. However,  had  I  not  been  resolutely 
determined  to  conclude  it  at  any  cost — men- 
tal, physical,  or  pecuniary — the  difficulties  that 
I  have  experienced  at  every  stage  might  have  led  to  its  early 
abandonment. 

The  greatest  difficulty  lay  in  procuring  material  which 
could  not  be  supplied  by  individual  research  and  investiga- 
tion. For  this  and  other  valid  reasons  that  will  follow  it  may 
safely  be  said  that  more  than  one-half  the  contents  of  this 
volume  are  in  the  strictest  sense  original,  the  remarks  and 
detail,  for  the  most  part,  being  the  products  of  my  own  per- 
sonal observation  and  reflection.  Correspondence  with  individ- 
uals and  the  State  and  National  authorities,  though  varied 
and  extensive,  elicited  not  a  half  dozen  important  facts.  I 
would  charge  no  one  with  discourtesy  in  this  particular,  and 
mention  the  circumstance  only  because  it  will  serve  to  empha- 
size what  I  shall  presently  say  anent  the  scarcity  of  available 
material. 

lyikewise,  a  painstaking  perusal  of  more  than  two  hundred 

46-2  (9) 


10  INTRODUCTION 

volumes  yielded  only  meagre  results,  and  in  most  of  these 
illusory  references  I  found  not  a  single  fact  worth  recording. 
This  comparatively  prodigious  number  included  gazeteers, 
encyclopedias,  geographies,  military  histories,  general  his- 
tories, State  and  National  reports,  journals  of  legislative  pro- 
ceedings, biographies,  genealogies,  reminiscences,  travels, 
romances — in  short,  any  and  all  books  that  I  had  thought 
calculated  to  shed  even  the  faintest  glimmer  of  light  on  the 
County's  history,  topographical  features,  etc. 

But,  contrary  to  my  expectations,  in  many  there  appeared 
no  manner  of  allusion  to  I^oudoun  County.  By  this  it  will  be 
seen  that  much  time  that  might  have  been  more  advan- 
tageously employed  was  necessarily  given  to  this  form  of 
fruitless  research. 

That  works  of  history  and  geography  can  be  prepared  in 
no  other  way,  no  person  at  all  acquainted  with  the  nature  of 
such  writings  need  be  told.  "As  well  might  a  traveler  pre- 
sume to  claim  the  fee-simple  of  all  the  country  which  he  has 
surveyed,  as  a  historian  and  geographer  expect  to  preclude 
those  who  come  after  him  from  making  a  proper  use  of  his 
labors.  If  the  former  writers  have  seen  accurately  and  re- 
lated faithfully,  the  latter  ought  to  have  the  resemblance  of 
declaring  the  same  facts,  with  that  variety  only  which  nature 
has  enstamped  upon  the  distinct  elaborations  of  every  individ- 
ual mind.  ...  As  works  of  this  sort  become  multiplied, 
voluminous,  and  detailed,  it  becomes  a  duty  to  literature  to 
abstract,  abridge,  and  give,  in  synoptical  views,  the  informa- 
tion that  is  spread  through  numerous  volumes." 

Touching  the  matter  gleaned  from  other  books,  I  claim  the 
sole  merit  of  being  a  laborious  and  faithful  compiler.  In  some 
instances,  where  the  thoughts  could  not  be  better  or  more 
briefly  expressed,  the  words  of  the  original  authors  may 
have  been  used. 

WKere  this  has  been  done  I  have,  whenever  possible,  made, 
in  my  footnotes  or  text,  frank  and  ample  avowal  of  the 
sources  from  which  I  have  obtained  the  particular  information 
presented.     This  has  not  always  been  possible  for  the  reason 


INTRODUCTION  11 

that  I  could  not  name,  if  disposed,  all  the  sources  from  which 
I  have  sought  and  obtained  information.  Many  of  the  ref- 
erences thus  secured  have  undergone  a  process  of  sifting  and, 
if  I  may  coin  the  couplet,  confirmatory  handling  which,  at 
the  last,  rendered  some  unrecognizable  and  their  origin 
untraceable. 

The  only  publication  of  a  strictly  local  color  unearthed 
during  my  research  was  Tajdor's  Memoir  of  Loudoun,  a  small 
book,  or  more  properly  a  pamphlet,  of  only  29  pages,  dealing 
principally  with  the  County's  geology,  geography,  and  cli- 
mate. It  was  written  to  accompany  the  map  of  Loudoun 
County,  drawn  by  Yardley  Taylor,  surveyor;  and  was  pub- 
lished by  Thomas  Reynolds,    of  Leesburg,  in  1853- 

I  wish  to  refer  specially  to  the  grateful  acknowledgment 
that  is  due  Arthur  Keith's  Geology  of  the  Catodin  Belt 
and  Carter's  and  Lyman's  Soil  Survey  of  the  Leesburg  Area^ 
two  Government  publications,  published  respectively  by  the 
United  States  Geological  Survey  and  Department  of  Agricul- 
ture, and  containing  a  fund  of  useful  information  relating 
to  the  geology,  soils,  and  geography  of  about  two-thirds  of 
the  area  of  Loudoun.  Of  course  these  works  have  been  the 
sources  to  which  I  have  chiefly  repaired  for  information 
relating  to  the  two  first-named  subjects.  Without  them  the 
cost  of  this  publication  would  have  been  considerably  aug- 
mented. As  it  is  I  have  been  spared  the  expense  and  labor  that 
would  have  attended  an  enforced  personal  investigation  of  the 
County's  soils  and  geology. 

And  now  a  tardy  and,  perhaps,  needless  w^ord  or  two  in 
revealment  of  the  purpose  of  this  volume. 

To  rescue  a  valuable  miscellany  of  facts  and  occurrences 
from  an  impending  oblivion;  to  gather  and  fix  certain  ephem- 
eral incidents  before  they  had  passed  out  of  remembrance; 
to  render  some  account  of  the  County's  vast  resources  and 
capabilities;  to  trace  its  geography  and  analyze  its  soils  and 
geology;  to  follow  the  tortuous  windings  of  its  numerous 
streams;  to  chronicle  the  multitudinous  deeds  of  sacrifice  and 
daring  performed  by  her  citizens  and  soldiery — such  has  been 
the  purpose  of  this  work,  such  its  object  and  design. 


12  INTRODUCTION 

But  the  idea  as  originally  evolved  contemplated  only  a 
chronology  of  events  from  the  establishment  of  the  County  to 
the  present  day.  Not  until  the  work  was  well  under  way 
was  the  matter  appearing  under  the  several  descriptive  heads 
supplemented. 

From  start  to  finish  this  self-appointed  task  has  been  prose- 
cuted with  conscientious  zeal  and  persistency  of  purpose, 
although  with  frequent  interruptions,  and  more  often  than 
not  amid  circumstances  least  favorable  to  literary  composi- 
tion. At  the  same  time  my  hands  have  been  filled  with 
laborious  avocations  of  another  kind. 

What  the  philosopher  Johnson  said  of  his  great  Dictionary 
and  himself  could  as  well  be  said  of  this  humble  volume  and 
its  author: 

*  'In  this  work,  when  it  shall  be  found  that  much  is  omitted, 
let  it  not  be  forgotten  that  much  likewise  is  performed;  and 
though  no  book  was  ever  spared  out  of  tenderness  to  the 
author,  and  the  world  is  little  solicitous  to  know  whence  pro- 
ceeded the  faults  of  that  which  it  condemns;  yet  it  may  gratify 
curiosity  to  inform  it,  that  the  English  Dictionary  was  written 
with  little  assistance  of  the  learned,  and  without  any  patron- 
age of  the  great;  not  in  the  soft  obscurities  of  retirement,  or 
under  the  shelter  of  academick  bowers,  but  amidst  inconven- 
ience and  distraction,  in  sickness  and  in  sorrow." 

If  further  digression  be  allowable  I  might  say  that  in  the 
preparation  of  this  work  I  have  observed  few  of  the  restric- 
tive rules  of  literary  sequence  and  have  not  infrequently  gone 
beyond  the  prescribed  limits  of  conventional  diction.  To  these 
transgressions  I  make  willing  confession.  I  have  striven  to 
present  these  sketches  in  the  most  lucid  and  concise  form 
compatible  with  readableness;  to  compress  the  greatest  possi- 
ble amount  of  useful  information  into  the  smallest  compass. 
Indeed,  had  I  been  competent,  I  doubt  that  I  would  have 
attempted  a  more  elaborate  rendition,  or  drawn  more  freely 
upon  the  language  and  the  coloring  of  poetry  and  the  imagina- 
tion.   I  have  therefore  to  apprehend  that  the  average  reader 


INTRODUCTION  13 

will  find  them  too  statistical  and  laconic,  too  much  abbre- 
viated and  void  of  detail. 

However,  a  disinterested  historian  I  have  not  been,  and 
should  such  a  charge  be  preferred  I  shall  look  for  speedy 
exculpation  from  the  discerning  mass  of  my  readers. 

In  this  connection  and  before  proceeding  further  I  desire  to 
say  that  my  right  to  prosecute  this  work  can  not  fairly  be 
questioned;  that  a  familiar  treatment  of  the  subject  I  have 
regarded  as  m}^  inalienable  prerogative.  I  was  born  in 
lyoudoun  County,  of  parents  who  in  turn  could  boast  the  same 
distinction,  and,  if  not  all,  certainly  the  happiest  days  of  my 
life  were  passed  within  those  sacred  precincts.  I  have  viewed 
her  housetops  from  every  crowning  eminence,  her  acres  of  un- 
matched grain,  her  Arcadian  pastures  and  browsing  herds, 
her  sun-kissed  hills  and  silvery,  serpentine  streams.  I  have 
known  the  broad,  ample  playgrounds  of  her  stately  old 
Academy,  and  shared  in  the  wholesome,  health-giving  sports 
their  breadth  permitted.  I  have  known  certain  of  her  astute 
schoolmasters  and  felt  the  full  rigor  of  their  discipline.  Stern 
tutors  they  were,  at  times  seemingly  cruel,  but  what  retro- 
spective mind  will  not  now  accord  them  unstinted  praise  and 
gratitude?  Something  more  than  the  mere  awakening  and 
development  of  slumbering  intellects  was  their  province:  raw, 
untamed  spirits  were  given  into  their  hands  for  a  brief  spell — 
brief  when  measured  in  after  years — and  were  then  sent  forth 
to  combat  Life's  problems  with  clean  hearts,  healthy  minds, 
robust  bodies,  and  characters  that  might  remain  unsullied 
though  beset  with  every  hellish  device  known  to  a  sordid 
world.  God  bless  the  dominies  of  our  boyhood — the  veteran 
schoolmasters  of  old  Loudoun! 

But  to  return  to  my  theme.  I  have  a  distinct  foresight  of 
the  views  which  some  will  entertain  and  express  in  reference 
to  this  work,  though  my  least  fears  of  criticism  are  from  those 
whose  experience  and  ability  best  qualify  them  to  judge. 

However,  to  the  end  that  criticism  may  be  disarmed  even 
before  pronouncement,  the  reader,  before  condemning  any 
statements  made  in  these  sketches  that  do  not  agree  with  his 


14  INTRODUCTION 

preconceived  opinions,  is  requested  to  examine  all  the  facts  in 
connection  therewith.  In  so  doing  it  is  thought  he  will  find 
these  statements  correct  in  the  main. 

In  such  a  variety  of  subjects  there  must  of  course  be  many 
omissions,  but  I  shall  be  greatly  disappointed  if  actual  errors 
are  discovered. 

In  substantiation  of  its  accuracy  and  thoroughness  I  need 
only  say  that  the  compilation  of  this  work  cost  me  three  years 
of  nocturnal  application — the  three  most  ambitious  and  dis- 
quieting years  of  the  average  life.  During  this  period  the 
entire  book  has  been  at  least  three  times  rewritten. 

In  the  best  form  of  which  I  am  capable  the  fruits  of  these 
protracted  labors  are  now  committed  to  the  candid  and,  it  is 
hoped,  kindly  judgment  of  the  people  of  Loudoun  County. 

Jamks  W.  Head. 
"Arcadia," 

Barcroft,  Va.,  Feb.  i,  igog. 


i^jsrn^to. 


SITUATION. 


Loudoun  County  lies  at  the  northern  extremity  of  "Pied* 
mont  Virginia,"*  forming  the  apex  of  one  of  the  most  pictur- 
esquely diversified  regions  on  the  American  continent.  Broad 
plains,  numerous  groups  and  ranges  of  hills  and  forest-clad 
mountains,  deep  river  gorges,  and  valleys  of  practically  every 
conceivable  form  are  strewn  to  the  point  of  prodigality  over 
this  vast  undulatory  area. 

The  particular  geographic  location  of  Loudoun  has  been 
most  accurately  reckoned  by  Yardley  Taylor,  who  in  1853 
made  a  governmental  survey  of  the  county.  He  placed  it 
"between  the  latitudes  of  38°  52>^''  and  39°  2V'  north 
latitude,  making  28>^''  of  latitude,  or  33  statute  miles,  and 
between  20"  and  53>^''  of  longitude  west  from  Washington, 
being  33>^''  of  longitude,  or  very  near  35  statute  miles." 

Loudoun  was  originally  a  part  of  the  six  million  acres 
which,  in  1661,  were  granted  by  Charles  II,  King  of  England, 
to  Lord  Hopton,  Earl  of  St.  Albans,  Lord  Culpeper,  Lord 
Berkeley,  Sir  William  Morton,  Sir  Dudley  Wyatt,  and  Thomas 
Culpeper.     All  the  territory  lying  between  the  Rappahannock 

*  "Piedmont"  means  "foot  of  the  mountain."  "Piedmont  Virginia," 
with  a  length  of  250  miles  and  an  average  width  of  about  25  miles, 
and  varying  in  altitude  from  300  to  1,200  feet,  lies  just  east  of  the  Bine 
Ridge  Mountains,  and  comprises  the  counties  of  Loudoun,  Fauquier, 
Culpeper,  Rappahannock,  Madison,  Greene,  Orange,  Albemarle,  Nelson, 
Amherst,  Bedford,  Franklin,  Henry,  and  Patrick.  It  is  a  portion  of  the 
belt  that  begins  in  New  ^England  and  stretches  thence  southward  to 
Georgia  and  Alabama. 

(15) 


16  HISTORY  OF 

and  Potomac  rivers  to  their  sources  was  included  in  this 
grant,  afterwards  known  as  the  "Fairfax  Patent,"  and  still 
later  as  the  "Northern  Neck  of  Virginia." 

"The  only  conditions  attached  to  the  conveyance  of  this 
domain,  the  equivalent  of  a  principality,  were  that  one-fifth 
of  all  the  gold  and  one-tenth  of  all  the  silver  discovered 
within  its  limits  should  be  reserved  for  the  royal  use,  and 
that  a  nominal  rent  of  a  few  pounds  sterling  should  be  paid 
into  the  treasury  at  Jamestown  each  year.  In  1669  the  letters 
patent  were  surrendered  by  the  existing  holders  and  in  their 
stead  new  ones  were  issued.  .  .  .  The  terms  of  these 
letters  required  that  the  whole  area  included  in  this  magnifi- 
cent gift  should  be  planted  and  inhabited  by  the  end  of 
twenty-one  years,  but  in  1688  this  provision  was  revoked  by 
the  King  as  imposing  an  impracticable  condition."* 

The  patentees,  some  years  afterward,  sold  the  grant  to  the 
second  Lord  Culpeper,  to  whom  it  was  confirmed  by  letters 
patent  of  King  James  II,  in  1688.  From  Culpeper  the  rights 
and  privileges  conferred  by  the  original  grant  descended 
through  his  daughter,  Catherine,  to  her  son,  Lord  Thomas 
Fairfax,  Baron  of  Cameron — a  princely  heritage  for  a  young 
man  of  20  years. 

BOUNDARIES. 

The  original  boundaries  of  Loudoun  County  were  changed 
by  the  following  act  of  the  General  Assembly,  passed  Jan- 
uary 3,  1798,  and  entitled  "An  Act  for  adding  part  of  the 
county  of  Loudoun  to  the  county  of  Fairfax,  and  altering 
the  place  of  holding  courts  in  Fairfax  County." 

1 .  Be  it  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly^  That  all  that  part  of  the  county 
of  Loudoun  lying  between  the  lower  boundary  thereof,  and  a  line  to  be 
drawn  from  the  mouth  of  Sugar  Land  run,  to  Carter's  mill,  on  Bull  run, 
shall  be,  and  is  hereby  added  to  and  made  part  of  the  countj-  of  Fairfax: 
Provided  always,  That  it  shall  be  lawful  for  the  sheriff  of  the  said  county 
of  Loudoun  to  collect  and  make  distress  for  any  public  dues  or  officers 
fees,  which  shall  remain  unpaid  by  the  inhabitants  of  that  part  of  the 

*Bruce's  Economic  History  of  Virginia. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  I7 

said  county  hereby  added  to  the  county  of  Fairfax,  and  shall  be  account- 
able for  the  same  in  like  manner  as  if  this  act  had  not  been  made. 

2.  And  be  it  further  enacted.  That  it  shall  be  lawful  for  a  majority  of 
the  acting  justices  of  the  peace  for  the  said  county  of  Fairfax,  together 
with  the  justices  of  the  county  of  Loudoun  included  within  the  part 
thus  added  to  the  said  county  of  Fairfax,  and  they  are  hereby  required 
at  a  court  to  be  held  in  the  month  of  April  or  May  next,  to  fix  on  a 
place  for  holding  courts  therein  at  or  as  near  the  center  thereof  (having 
regard  to  that  part  of  the  county  of  Loudoun  hereby  added  to  the  said 
county  of  Fairfax)  as  the  situation  and  convenience  will  admit  of;  and 
thenceforth  proceed  to  erect  the  necessary  public  buildings  at  such 
place,  and  until  such  buildings  be  completed,  to  appoint  any  place  for 
holding  courts  as  they  shall  think  proper. 

3.  This  act  shall  commence  and  be  in  force  from  and  after  the  pass- 
ing thereof. 

As  at  present  bounded,  the  old  channel  at  the  mouth  of 
Sugar  Ivand  run,  at  I^owe's  Island,*  is  "the  commencement 
of  the  line  that  separates  I^oudoun  from  Fairfax  County  and 
runs  directly  across  the  country  to  a  point  on  the  Bull  Run 
branch  of  Occoquan  River,  about  three  eighths  of  a  mile 
above  Sudley  Springs,  in  Prince  William  County."  The  Bull 
Run  then  forms  the  boundary  between  Loudoun  and  Prince 
William  to  its  highest  spring  head  in  the  Bull  Run  mountain, 
just  below  the  Cool  Spring  Gap.  The  line  then  extends  to 
the  summit  of  the  mountain,  where  the  counties  of  Fauquier 
and  Prince  William  corner.  From  the  summit  of  this  moun- 
tain, a  direct  line  to  a  pointf  on  the  Blue  Ridge,  at  Ashby's 

*"What  is  called  Lowe's  Island,  at  the  mouth  of  Sugarland  Run,  was 
formerly  an  island,  and  made  so  by  that  run  separating  and  part  of  it 
passing  into  the  river  by  the  present  channel,  while  a  part  of  it  entered 
the  river  by  what  is  now  called  the  old  channel.  This  old  channel  is 
now  partially  filled  up,  and  only  receives  the  waters  of  Sugarland  Run 
in  times  of  freshets.  Occasionally  when  there  is  high  water  in  the  river 
the  waters  pass  up  the  present  channel  of  the  run  to  the  old  channel, 
and  then  follow  that  to  the  river  again.  This  old  channel  enters  the 
river  immediately  west  of  the  ,primordial  range  of  rocks,  that  impinge 
so  closely  upon  the  river  from  here  to  Georgetown,  forming  as  they  do 
that  series  of  falls  known  as  Seneca  Falls,  the  Great,  and  the  Little 
Falls,  making  altogether  a  fall  of  188  feet  in  less  than  20  miles.'*— 
Memoir  of  Loudoun, 

fDesignated  in  an  old  record  as  a  "double-bodied  poplar  tree  stand- 
ing in  or  near  the  middle  of  the  thoroughfare  of  Ashby's  Gap  on  the 
top  of  the  Blue  Ridge."  It  succumbed  to  the  ravages  of  time  and  fire 
while  this  work  was  in  course  of  preparation. 


18  HISTORY  OF 

Gap,  marks  the  boundary  between  Loudoun  and  Fauquier 
counties.  A  devious  line,  whicli  follows  in  part  the  crests  of 
the  Blue  Ridge  until  reaching  the  Potomac  below  Harpers 
Ferry,  separates  Loudoun  from  Clarke  County,  Virginia,  and 
Jefferson  County,  West  Virginia,  on  her  western  border. 
The  Potomac  then  becomes  the  dividing  line  between 
Loudoun  County,  and  Frederick  and  Montgomery  counties, 
Maryland;  "and  that  State,  claiming  the  whole  of  the  river, 
exercises  jurisdiction  over  the  islands  as  well  as  the  river." 

This  completes  an  outline  of  109  miles,  viz:  19  miles  in 
company  with  Fairfax,  10  with  Prince  William,  17  with 
Fauquier,  26  with  Clarke  and  Jefferson,  and  37  miles  along 
the  Potomac. 

TOPOGRAPHY. 

Loudoun  County  is  preeminently  a  diversified  region;  its 
surface  bearing  many  marked  peculiarities,  many  grand  dis- 
tinctive features.  The  broken  ranges  of  hills  and  mountains, 
abounding  in  Piedmont  Virginia,  here  present  themselves  in 
softly  rounded  outline,  gradually  sinking  down  into  the 
plains,  giving  great  diversity  and  picturesqueness  to  the  land- 
scape. They  are  remarkable  for  their  parallelism,  regularity, 
rectilineal  direction  and  evenness  of  outline,  and  constitute 
what  is  by  far  the  most  conspicuous  feature  in  the  topography 
of  Loudoun.  Neither  snow-capped  nor  barren,  they  are  clothed 
with  vegetation  from  base  to  summit  and  afford  fine  range 
and  pasturage  for  sheep  and  cattle. 

The  main  valleys  are  longitudinal  and  those  running  trans- 
versely few  and  comparatively  unimportant. 

The  far-famed  Loudoun  valley,  reposing  peacefully  between 
the  Blue  Ridge  and  Catoctin  mountains,  presents  all  the  many 
varied  topographic  aspects  peculiar  to  a  territory  abounding 
in  foothills. 

The  Blue  Ridge,  the  southeasternmost  range  of  the  AUe- 
ghanies  or  Appalachian  System  presents  here  that  uniformity 
and  general  appearance  which  characterizes  it  throughout  the 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  19 

State,  having  gaps  or  depressions  every  eight  or  ten  miles, 
through  which  the  public  roads  pass.  The  most  important  of 
these  are  the  Potomac  Gap  at  500  feet  and  Snickers  and  Ashby's 
Gap,  both  at  1,100  feet.  The  altitude  of  this  range  in  Lou- 
doun varies  from  1,000  to  1,600  feet  above  tide-water,  and 
from  300  to  900  feet  above  the  adjacent  country.  It  falls  from 
1,100  to  1,000  feet  in  4  miles  south  of  the  river,  and  then, 
rising  sharply  to  1,600  feet,  continues  at  the  higher  series  of 
elevations.  The  Blue  Ridge  borders  the  county  on  the  west, 
its  course  being  about  south  southwest,  or  nearly  parallel 
with  the  Atlantic  Coast-line,  and  divides  Loudoun  from 
Clarke  County,  Virginia,  and  Jefferson  County,  West  Virginia, 
the  line  running  along  the  summit. 

Of  nearly  equal  height  and  similar  features  are  the  Short 
Hills,  another  range  commencing  at  the  Potomac  River  about 
four  miles  below  Harpers  Ferry  and  extending  parallel  to  the 
Blue  Ridge,  at  a  distance  of  nearly  four  miles  from  summit  to 
summit,  for  about  twelve  miles  into  the  County,  where  it  is 
broken  by  a  branch  of  Catoctin  Creek.  Beyond  this  stream 
it  immediately  rises  again  and  extends  about  three  miles 
further,  at  which  point  it  abruptly  terminates. 

A  third  range,  called  "Catoctin  Mountain,"  nas  its  incep- 
tion in  Pennsylvania,  traverses  Maryland,  is  interrupted  by 
the  Potomac,  reappears  in  Virginia  at  the  river  margin,  oppo- 
site Point  of  Rocks,  and  extends  through  Loudoun  County 
for  a  distance  of  twenty  or  more  miles,  when  it  is  again 
interrupted. 

Elevations  on  Catoctin  Mountain  progressively  diminish 
southward  from  the  Potomac  River  to  Aldie,  although  the  rocks 
remain  the  same,  and  the  Tertiary  drainage,  which  might  be 
supposed  to  determine  their  elevations,  becomes  less  effective 
in  that  direction. 

Probably  this  mountain  does  not  exceed  an  average  of  more 
than  300  feet  above  the  surrounding  country,  though  at 
some  stages  it  may  attain  an  altitude  of  700  feet.  Rising 
near  the  Potomac  into  one  of  its  highest  peaks,  in  the  same 
range  it  becomes  alternately  depressed  and  elevated,  until 


20  HISTORY  OF 

reaching  the  point  of  its  divergence  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Waterford.  There  it  assumes  the  appearance  of  an  elevated 
and  hilly  region,  deeply  indented  by  the  myriad  streams  that 
rise  in  its  bosom. 

On  reaching  the  I^eesburg  and  Snicker's  Gap  Turnpike 
road,  a  distance  of  twelve  miles,  it  expands  to  three  miles  in 
width  and  continues  much  the  same  until  broken  by  Goose 
Creek  and  its  tributary,  the  North  Fork,  when  it  gradually 
loses  itself  in  the  hills  of  Goose  Creek  and  Little  River,  before 
reaching  the  Ashby's  Gap  Turnpike. 

The  Catoctin  range  throughout  Loudoun  pursues  a  course 
parallel  to  the  Blue  Ridge,  the  two  forming  an  intermediate 
valley  or  base-level  plain,  ranging  in  width  from  8  to  12  miles, 
and  in  altitude  from  350  to  730  feet  above  sea  level.  Allusion 
to  the  physiography  of  this  valley — so  called  only  by  reason 
of  its  relation  to  the  mountains  on  either  side — has  been  made 
elsewhere  in  this  department. 

Immediately  south  of  Aldie,  on  Little  River,  near  the  point 
of  interruption  of  Catoctin  Mountain,  another  range  com- 
mences and  extends  into  Fauquier  County.  It  is  known  as 
"Bull  Run  Mountain,"  but  might  rightly  be  considered  an 
indirect  continuation  of  the  elevation  of  the  Catoctin,  its 
course  and  some  of  its  features  corresponding  very  nearly 
with  that  mountain  save  only  that  it  is  higher  than  any  of  the 
ranges  of  the  latter,  excepting  the  western. 

East  of  the  Catoctin  the  tumultuous  continuity  of  moun- 
tains subsides  into  gentle  undulations,  an  almost  unbroken 
succession  of  sloping  elevations  and  depressions  presenting  an 
as  yet  unimpaired  variety  and  charm  of  landscape.  However, 
on  the  extreme  eastern  edge  of  this  section,  level  stretches  of 
considerable  extent  are  a  conspicuous  feature  of  the  topog- 
raphy. 

Three  or  four  detached  hills,  rising  to  an  elevation  of  1  0 
or  200  feet  above  the  adjacent  country,  are  the  only  ones  of 
consequence  met  with  in  this  section. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  21 


COMPARATIVE  ALTITUDES. 

The  hilly  character  of  Loudoun  is  clearly  shown  by  the 
following  exhibit  of  the  elevation  of  points  and  places  above 
tidewater.  The  variations  of  altitude  noted  in  this  schedule 
are  based  upon  conflicting  estimates  and  distinct  measure- 
ments made  at  two  or  more  points  within  a  given  circumfer- 
ence and  slightly  removed  one  from  the  other. 

Feet. 

Sterling 4l5 

Ashburn 320 

Leesburg 321  to  337 

Clarke's  Gap 578  to  634 

Hamilton 454  to  521 

Purcellville 546  to  553 

Round  Hill 558 

Bluemont 680  to  730 

Snicker's  Gap 1 ,085 

Neersville 626 

Hillsborough 550 

Waterf ord 36O 

Mount  Gilead 600 

Oatlands 270 

Little  River,  near  Aldie 299 

Middleburg 48O 

Potomac  River,  near  Seneca  Dam 188 

Potomac  River,  at  Point  of  Rocks 200 

Potomac  River,  at  Harper's  Ferry 246 

The  whole  of  the  county  east  of  the  Catoctin  Mountain 
varies  from  200  to  350  feet.  The  eastern  base  of  the  Blue 
Ridge  has  an  elevation  of  about  730  feet,  and  the  highest 
peak  of  that  range  in  Loudoun  rises  1 ,600  feet  above  tide- water. 
The  Short  Hills  have  an  approximate  altitude  of  1,000  feet, 
while  that  of  the  Catoctin  Mountain  varies  from  3OO  to  700 
feet.  The  valley  between  the  Blue  Ridge  and  Catoctin  Moun- 
tains varies  from  350  to  730  feet  in  elevation. 


22  HISTORY  OF 

From  many  vantage  points  along  the  Blue  Ridge  may  be 
obtained  magnificent  views  of  both  the  Loudoun  and  Shenan- 
doah valleys.  The  eye  travels  entirely  across  the  fertile 
expanse  of  the  latter  to  where,  in  the  far  distance,  the  Alle- 
ghany and  North  Mountains  rear  their  wooded  crests.  A  few 
of  the  summits  offer  even  more  extensive  prospects.  From 
some  nearly  all  of  Loudoun,  with  a  considerable  area  of  Fair- 
fax and  Fauquier,  is  in  full  view.  Other  more  distant  areas 
within  visionary  range  are  portions  of  Prince  William,  Rap- 
pahannock, and  Culpeper  counties,  in  Virginia,  Frederick  and 
Montgomery  counties,  in  Maryland,  and  even  some  of  Prince 
George  County,  east  of  Washington  City.  Westward,  the 
view  embraces  Shenandoah,  Frederick,  Clarke  and  Warren 
counties,  in  Virginia,  Berkeley  and  Jefferson  counties,  in  West 
Virginia,  Washington  County,  in  Maryland,  and  some  of  the 
mountain  summits  of  Pennsylvania. 


DRAINAGE. 

The  drainage  of  Loudoun  can  be  divided  into  two  provinces. 
One  is  the  Potomac  province,  which  is  drained  by  a  system  of 
small  tributaries  of  that  stream.  Its  elevations  are  quite  uni- 
form and  are  referable  to  that  master  stream,  whose  grade  is 
largely  determined  by  its  great  basin  beyond  the  **Catoctin 
belt. ' '  The  second  province  is  the  region  drained  by  smaller 
streams,  chief  of  which  is  Goose  Creek.  In  this  province  the 
drainage  lines  head  entirely  within  the  "Catoctin  belt, ' '  and  the 
elevations  are  variable  according  to  the  constitution  of  the 
rocks  in  the  belt  itself. 

The  tributaries  by  which  the  drainage  of  the  two  provinces 
is  effected  are  Catoctin  Creek,  North  Fork  Catoctin  Creek, 
South  Fork  Catoctin  Creek,  Little  River,  North  Fork  Goose 
Creek,  Beaver-dam  Creek,  Piney  Run,  Jeffries  Branch,  Crom- 
wells  Run,  Hungry  Run,  Bull  Run,  Sycoline  Creek,  Tuscarora 
Creek,  Horse  Pen  Run,  Broad  Run,  Sugarland  Run,  Elk  Lick, 
Limestone  Branch,  and  as  many  lesser  streams. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  23 

The  general  slope  of  the  county  being  to  the  northeast,  the 
waters,  for  the  most  part,  naturally  follow  the  same  course, 
as  may  be  readily  perceived  by  reference  to  maps  of  the  sec- 
tion. The  streams  that  rise  in  the  Blue  Ridge  mostly  flow  to 
the  eastward  until  they  approach  the  Catoctin  Mountain, 
where  they  are  then  deflected  more  toward  either  the  north 
or  south  to  pass  that  range  by  the  Northwest  Fork  and  Goose 
Creek,  or  by  the  Catoctin  Creek  which  falls  into  the  Potomac 
above  Point  of  Rocks.  East  of  Catoctin  Mountain  the 
streams  pursue  a  more  or  less  direct  northern  course. 

Goose  Creek,  a  right-hand  branch  of  the  Potomac  River, 
is  a  considerable  stream,  pursuing  a  course  of  about  fifty 
miles  from  its  source  in  Fauquier  County  to  its  junction  with 
the  Potomac  four  miles  northeast  of  I^eesburg.  It  once  bore 
the  Indian  name  Gohongarestaw ,  meaning  ''  River  of  Swans." 
Flowing  northeastward  across  lyoudoun,  it  receives  many 
smaller  streams  until  passing  the  first  range  of  Catoctin 
Mountain,  when  it  claims  a  larger  tributary,  the  North  Fork. 
Goose  Creek  represents  subsequent  drainage  dependent  on 
the  syncline  of  the  Blue  Ridge  and  dating  back  at  least  as  far  as 
Cretaceous  time.  Its  length  in  I^oudoun  is  about  thirty  miles, 
and  it  has  a  fall  of  one  hundred  feet  in  the  last  twenty-two 
miles  of  its  course.  It  drains  nearly  one-half  the  county  and 
is  about  sixty  yards  wide  at  its  mouth. 

Catoctin  Creek  is  very  crooked  ;  its  basin  does  not  exceed 
twelve  miles  as  the  crow  flies,  and  includes  the  whole  width 
of  the  valley  between  the  mountains  except  a  small  portion 
in  the  northeastern  angle  of  the  County.  Yet  its  entire  course, 
measuring  its  meanders,  would  exceed  thirty-five  miles.  It 
has  a  fall  of  one  hundred  and  eighty  feet  in  the  last  eighteen 
miles  of  its  course,  and  is  about  twenty  yards  wide  near  its 
mouth. 

The  Northwest  Fork  rises  in  the  Blue  Ridge  and  flows 
southeastward,  mingling  its  waters  with  the  Beaver  Dam, 
coming  from  the  southwest,  immediately  above  Catoctin 
Mountain,  where  their  united  waters  pass  through  a  narrow 
valley  to  Goose  Creek. 


24  HISTORY    OF 

Little  River,  a  small  affluent  of  Goose  Creek,  rises  in  Fau- 
quier County  west  of  Bull  Run  mountain  and  enters  Loudon 
a  few  miles  southwestward  of  Aldie.  It  pursues  a  northern 
and  northeastern  course  until  it  has  passed  that  town,  turning 
then  more  to  the  northward  and  falling  into  Goose  Creek. 
Before  the  Civil  War  it  was  rendered  navigable  from  its 
mouth  to  Aldie  by  means  of  dams. 

Broad  Run,  the  next  stream  of  consequence  east  of  Goose 
Creek,  rises  in  Prince  William  County  and  pursues  a  northern 
course,  with  some  meanderings  through  Loudoun.  It  flows 
into  the  Potomac  about  four  miles  below  the  mouth  df  Goose 
Creek. 

Sugarland  Run,  a  still  smaller  stream,  rises  partly  in 
Loudoun,  though  its  course  is  chiefly  through  Fairfax  County, 
and  empties  into  the  Potomac  at  the  northeastern  angle  of  the 
County. 

In  its  southeastern  angle  several  streams  rise  and  pursue  a 
southern  and  southeastern  course,  and  constitute  some  of  the 
upper  branches  of  Occoquan  River. 

Perhaps  no  county  in  the  State  is  better  watered  for  all 
purposes,  except  manufacturing  in  times  of  drought.  Many 
of  the  farms  might  be  divided  into  fields  of  ten  acres  each 
and,  in  ordinary  seasons,  would  have  water  in  each  of  them. 

There  are  several  mineral  springs  in  the  county  of  the  class 
called  chalybeate,  some  of  which  contain  valuable  medicinal 
properties,  and  other  springs  and  wells  that  are  affected  with 
lime.  Indeed,  in  almost  every  part  of  the  County,  there  is  an 
exhaustless  supply  of  the  purest  spring  water.  This  is  due, 
in  great  part,  to  the  porosity  of  the  soil  which  allows  the 
water  to  pass  freely  into  the  earth,  and  the  slaty  character  of 
the  rocks  which  favors  its  descent  into  the  bowels  of  the  hills, 
from  whence  it  finds  its  way  to  the  surface,  at  their  base,  in 
numberless  small  springs.  The  purity  of  these  waters  is  bor- 
rowed from  the  silicious  quality  of  the  soil. 

The  largest  spring  of  any  class  in  the  county  is  Big  Spring,  a 
comparatively  broad  expanse  of  water  of  unsurpassed  quality, 
bordering  the  Leesburg  and  Point  of  Rocks  turnpike,  about 
two  miles  north  of  Leesburg. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  25 

The  springs,  as  has  been  stated,  are  generally  small  and 
very  numerous,  and  many  of  them  are  unfailing,  though  lia- 
ble to  be  affected  by  drought.  In  such  cases,  by  absorption 
and  evaporation,  the  small  streams  are  frequently  exhausted 
before  uniting  and  often  render  the  larger  ones  too  light  for 
manufacturing  purposes.  Nevertheless,  water  power  is  abun- 
dant; the  county's  diversified  elevation  giving  considerable 
fall  to  its  water  courses,  and  many  sites  are  occupied. 


CLIMATE. 

Because  responsible  statistical  data  is  usually  accorded  un- 
qualified credence,  it  is  without  undue  hesitation  that  the 
following  bit  of  astonishing  information,  gleaned  from  a 
reliable  source,  is  here  set  down  as  positive  proof  of  the  ex- 
cellence of  lyoudoun's  climate:  "It  (Leesburg)  is  located  in 
a  section  the  healthiest  in  the  world,  as  proven  by  statistics 
which  place  the  death  rate  at  S]4  per  1,000,  the  very  lowest 
in  the  table  of  mortality  gathered  from  all  parts  of  the  hab- 
itable globe." 

The  climate  of  Loudoun,  like  that  of  most  other  localities, 
is  governed  mainly  by  the  direction  of  the  prevailing  winds, 
and,  to  a  limited  extent,  is  influenced  by  the  county's  diversi- 
fied physical  features. 

Though  the  rainfall  is  abundant,  amounting  annually  to 
forty  or  fifty  inches,  ordinarily  the  air  is  dry  and  salubrious. 
This  ample  precipitation  is  usually  well  distributed  through- 
out the  growing  season  and  is  rarely  insufl&cient  or  excessive. 
The  summer  rainfall  comes  largely  in  the  form  of  local 
showers,  scarcely  ever  attended  by  hail.  Loudoun  streams 
for  the  most  part  are  pure  and  rapid,  and« there  appears  to  be 
no  local  cause  to  generate  malaria. 

In  common  with  the  rest  of  Virginia  the  climate  of  Loudoun 
corresponds  very  nearly  with  that  of  Cashmere  and  the  best 
parts  of  China.     The  mean  annual  temperature  is  50°  to  55°. 

Loudoun  winters  are  not  of  long  duration  and  are  seldom 

45—3 


26  HISTORY  OF 

marked  by  protracted  severity.  Snow  does  not  cover  the 
ground  for  any  considerable  period  and  the  number  of  bright 
sunny  days  during  these  seasons  is  unusually  large.  In  their 
extremes  of  cold  they  are  less  rigorous  than  the  average 
winters  of  sections  farther  north  or  even  of  western  localities 
of  the  same  latitude.  Consequently  the  growing  season  here 
is  much  more  extended  than  in  either  of  those  sections.  The 
prevailing  winds  in  winter  are  from  the  north  and  west,  and 
from  these  the  mountains  afford  partial  protection. 

The  seasons  are  somewhat  earlier  even  than  in  the  Shenan- 
doah Valley,  just  over  the  western  border  of  lyoudoun,  and 
the  farmers  here  plant  and  harvest  their  crops  from  one  week 
to  ten  days  earlier  than  the  farmers  of  that  region. 

Loudoun  summers,  as  a  rule,  are  long  and  agreeably  cool, 
while  occasional  periods  of  extreme  heat  are  not  more  oppres- 
sive than  in  many  portions  of  the  North.  The  mountains  of 
lyoudoun  have  a  delightful  summer  climate  coupled  with 
inspiring  scenery,  and  are  well  known  as  the  resort  of 
hundreds  seeking  rest,  recreation,  or  the  restoration  of  health. 
This  region,  owing  to  its  low  humidity,  has  little  dew  at 
night,  and  accordingly  has  been  found  especially  beneficial 
for  consumptives  and  those  afflicted  with  pulmonary  diseases. 
The  genial  southwest  trade  winds,  blowing  through  the  long 
parallel  valleys,  impart  to  them  and  the  enclosing  mountains 
moisture  borne  from  the  far  away  Gulf  of  Mexico. 


GEOLOGY. 

The  geology  of  more  than  half  the  area  of  Loudoun  County 
has  received  thorough  and  intelligent  treatment  at  the  hands 
of  Arthur  Keith  in  his  most  excellent  work  entitled  *  *  Geology 
of  the  Catodin  Belt,'"  authorized  and  published  by  the  United 
States  Geological  Survey.* 

*♦  Credit  for  many  important  disclosures  and  much  of  the  detail  ap- 
pearing in  this  department  is  unreservedly  accorded  Mr.  Keith  and  his 
assistants. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  27 

Mr.  Keith's  analysis  covered  the  whole  of  Bull  Run  Moun- 
tain, the  Catoctin  in  its  course  through  Virginia  and  Mary- 
land to  its  termination  in  southern  Pennsylvania,  the  Blue 
Ridge  and  South  Mountain  for  a  corresponding  distance,  all 
intermediate  ridges  and  valleys  and  contiguous  territory 
lying  outside  this  zone  and  paralleling  the  two  flanking 
ranges.* 

In  this  important  work  the  Catoctin  Belt  is  shown  to  be  an 
epitome  of  the  leading  events  of  geologic  history  in  the  Ap- 
palachian region.  It  contains  the  earliest  formations  whose 
original  character  can  be  certified;  it  contains  almost  the 
latest  known  formations;  and  the  record  is  unusually  full, 
with  the  exception  of  the  later  Paleozoic  rocks.  Its  structures 
embrace  nearly  every  known  type  of  deformation.  It  furnishes 
examples  of  every  process  of  erosion,  of  topograph}^  derived 
from  rocks  of  nearly  every  variety  of  composition,  and  of 
topography  derived  from  all  types  of  structure  except  the  flat 
plateau  type.  In  the  recurrence  of  its  main  geographic 
features  from  pre-Cambrian  time  till  the  present  day  it  fur- 
nishes a  remarkable  and  unique  example  of  the  permanence 
of  continental  form. 

With  certain  qualifications,  a  summary  of  the  leading  events 
that  have  left  their  impress  on  the  region  is  as  follows: 

1.  Surface  eruption  of  diabase. 

2.  Injection  of  granite. 

3.  Erosion. 

4.  Surface  eruption  of  quartz-porphyry,  rhyolite,  and 
andesite. 

5.  Surface  eruption  of  diabase. 

6.  Erosion. 

7.  Submergence,  deposition  of  Cambrian  formations;  slight 
oscillations  during  their  deposition;  reduction  of  land  to  base- 
level. 

*The  name*' Catoctin  Belt  "is  applied  to  this  region  because  it  is 
separated  by  Catoctin  Mountain  from  the  Piedmont  plain  as  a  geo- 
graphic unit  more  distinctly  than  in  any  other  area,  and  because  its 
geological  unity  is  completed  by  Catoctin  more  fully  and  compactly 
than  elsewhere. 


28  HISTORY  OF 

8.  Eastward  tilting  and  deposition  of  Martinsburg  shale; 
oscillations  during  later  Paleozoic  time. 

9.  Uplift,  post- Carboniferous  deformation  and  erosion. 

10.  Depression  and  Newark  deposition;  diabase  intrusion. 

11.  Uplift,  Newark  deformation;  and  erosion  to  Catoctin 
baselevel. 

12.  Depression  and  deposition  of  Potomac,  Magothy,  and 
Severn. 

13.  Uplift  south  westward  and  erosion  to  baselevel. 

14.  Uplift,  warping  and  degradation  to  Tertiary  baselevel; 
deposition  of  Pamunkey  and  Chesapeake. 

15.  Depression  and  deposition  of  I^afayette. 

16.  Uplift  and  erosion  to  lower  Tertiary  baselevel. 

17.  Uplift,  warping  and  erosion  to  Pleistocene  baselevel; 
deposition  of  high-level  Columbia. 

18.  Uplift  and  erosion  to  lower  Pleistocene  baselevel;  dep- 
osition of  low-level  Columbia. 

19.  Uplift  and  present  erosion. 

Along  the  Coastal  plain  reduction  to  baselevel  was  followed 
by  depression  and  deposition  of  lyafayette  gravels;  elevation 
followed  and  erosion  of  minor  baselevels;  second  depression 
followed  and  deposition  of  Columbia  gravels;  again  comes 
elevation  and  excavation  of  narrow  valleys;  then  depression 
and  deposition  of  low-level  Columbia;  last,  elevation  and 
channeling,  which  is  proceeding  at  present.  Along  the 
Catoctin  Belt  denudation  to  baselevel  was  followed  by  depres- 
sion and  deposition  of  gravels;  elevation  followed  and  erosion 
of  minor  baselevels  among  the  softer  rocks;  second  depression 
followed,  with  possible  gravel  deposits;  elevation  came  next 
with  excavation  of  broad  bottoms;  last,  elevation  and  chan- 
neling, at  present  in  progress. 

The  general  structure  of  the  Catoctin  Belt  is  anticlinal. 
On  its  core  appear  the  oldest  rocks;  on  its  borders,  those  of 
medium  age;  and  in  adjacent  provinces  the  younger  rocks. 
In  the  location  of  its  system  of  faulting,  also,  it  faithfully 
follows  the  Appalachian  law  that  faults  lie  upon  the  steep  side 
of  anticlines. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  29 

After  the  initial  location  of  the  folds  along  these  lines,  com- 
pression and  deformation  continued.  Yielding  took  place  in 
the  different  rocks  according  to  their  constitution. 

Into  this  system  of  folds  the  drainage  lines  carved  their 
way.  On  the  anticlines  were  developed  the  chief  streams,  and 
the  synclines  were  left  till  the  last.  The  initial  tendency  to 
synclinal  ridges  was  obviated  in  places  by  the  weakness  of 
the  rocks  situated  in  the  synclines,  but  even  then  the  tendency 
to  retain  elevation  is  apt  to  cause  low  ridges.  The  drainage 
of  the  belt  as  a  whole  is  anticlinal  to  a  marked  degree,  for 
the  three  main  synclinal  lines  are  lines  of  great  elevation,  and 
the  anticlines  are  invariably  valleys. 

In  order  of  solubility  the  rocks  of  the  Catoctin  Belt,  within 
the  limits  of  lyoudon  County,  to  which  section  all  subsequent 
geologic  data  will  be  confined,  stand  as  follows: 

1.  Newark  limestone  conglomerate;  calcareous. 

2.  Newark  sandstone  and  shale;  calcareous  and  felds- 
pathic. 

3.  Newark  diabase;  feldspathic. 

4.  Granite;  feldspathic. 

5.  Loudoun  formation;  feldspathic. 

6.  Granite  and  schist;  feldspathic. 

7.  Catoctin  schist;  epidotic  and  feldspathic. 

8.  Weverton  sandstone;  siliceous. 

All  of  these  formations  are  in  places  reduced  to  baselevel. 
The  first  three  invariably  are,  unless  protected  by  a  harder 
rock;  the  next  three  usually  are;  the  Catoctin  schist  only  in 
small  parts  of  its  area;  the  Weverton  only  along  a  small  part 
of  Catoctin  Mountain. 

The  Catoctin  Belt  itself  may  be  described  as  a  broad  area  of 
igneous  rocks  bordered  by  two  lines  of  Lower  Cambrian 
sandstones  and  slates.  Over  the  surface  of  the  igneous  rocks 
are  scattered  occasional  outliers  of  the  Lower  Cambrian  slate; 
but  far  the  greater  part  of  the  surface  of  the  belt  is  covered 
by  the  igneous  rocks.  The  belt  as  a  whole  may  be  regarded 
as  an  anticline,  the  igneous  rocks  constituting  the  core,  the 


30  HISTORY  OF 

Lower  Cambrian  the  flanks,  and  the  Silurian  and  Newark  the 
adjoining  zones.  The  outcrops  of  the  Lower  Cambrian  rocks 
are  in  synclines,  as  a  rule,  and  are  complicated  by  many 
faults.  The  igneous  rocks  have  also  been  much  folded  and 
crumpled,  but  on  account  of  their  lack  of  distinctive  beds  the 
details  of  folds  can  not  well  be  traced  among  them. 

They  are  the  oldest  rocks  in  the  Catoctin  Belt  and  occupy 
most  of  its  area.  They  are  also  prominent  from  their  unusual 
character  and  rarity. 

An  important  class  of  rocks  occurring  in  the  Catoctin  Belt 
is  the  sedimentary  series.  It  is  all  included  in  the  Cambrian 
period  and  consists  of  limestone,  shale,  sandstone  and  con- 
glomerate. The  two  border  zones  of  the  Catoctin  Belt,  how- 
ever, contain  also  rocks  of  the  Silurian  and  Juratrias  periods. 
In  general,  the  sediments  are  sandy  and  calcareous  in  the 
Juratrias  area,  and  sandy  in  the  Catoctin  Belt.  They  have 
been  the  theme  of  considerable  literature,  owing  to  their  great 
extent  and  prominence  in  the  topography. 

Granite. 

The  granite  in  the  southern  portion  of  the  County  is  very 
important  in  point  of  extent,  almost  as  much  so  as  the  diabase 
in  the  same  section. 

The  areas  of  granite  are,  as  a  rule,  long  narrow  belts,  and 
vary  greatly  in  width. 

The  mineralogical  composition  of  the  granite  is  quite  con- 
stant over  large  areas.  Six  varieties  can  be  distinguished, 
however,  each  with  a  considerable  areal  extent.  The  essential 
constituents  are  quartz,  orthoclase  and  plagioclase,  and  by 
the  addition  to  these  of  biotite,  garnet,  epidote,  blue  quartz, 
and  hornblende,  five  types  are  formed.  All  these  types  are 
holocrystalline,  and  range  in  texture  from  coarse  granite 
with  augen  an  inch  long  down  to  a  fine  epidote  granite  with 
scarcely  visible  crystals. 

Loudoun  Formation. 

Among  the  various  Cambrian  formations  of  the  Catoctin 
Belt  there  are  wide  differences  in  uniformity  and  composition. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  31 

In  none  is  it  more  manifest  than  in  the  first  or  Loudoun 
formation.  This  was  theoretically  to  be  expected,  for  first 
deposits  upon  a  crystalline  foundation  represent  great  changes 
and  transition  periods  of  adjustment  among  new  currents  and 
sources  of  supply.  The  Loudoun  formation,  indeed,  runs  the 
whole  gamut  of  sedimentary  possibilities,  and  that  within 
very  short  geographical  limits.  Five  miles  northwest  of 
Aldie  the  Loudoun  formation  comprises  limestone,  slate,  sandy 
slate,  sandstone,  and  conglomerate  with  pebbles  as  large  as 
hickory  nuts.  These  amount  in  thickness  to  fully  800  feet, 
while  less  than  three  miles  to  the  east  the  entire  formation  is 
represented  by  eight  or  ten  feet  of  black  slate. 

The  name  of  the  Loudoun  formation  is  given  on  account  of 
the  frequent  occurrence  of  all  its  variations  in  Loudoun 
County.  Throughout  the  entire  extent  of  the  Catoctin  Belt, 
and  especially  through  its  central  portions,  the  Loudoun 
formation  has  frequent  beds  of  sandstone,  conglomerate,  and 
limestone.  The  limestones  occur  as  lenses  along  two  lines; 
one  immediately  west  of  Catoctin  Mountain,  the  other  three 
or  four  miles  east  of  the  Blue  Ridge.  Along  the  western 
range  the  limestone  lenses  extend  only  to  the  Potomac.  There 
they  are  shown  on  both  sides  of  the  river,  and  have  been 
worked  in  either  place  for  agricultural  lime.  Only  the  refuse 
of  the  limestone  now  remains,  but  the  outcrops  have  been 
extant  until  recent  years.  Along  the  eastern  line  the  lime- 
stone lenses  extend  across  the  Potomac  and  into  Maryland 
for  about  one  mile,  and  it  is  along  this  belt  that  they  are 
the  most  persistent  and  valuable.  As  a  rule  they  are  altered 
from  limestone  into  marble,  and  at  one  point  they  have  been 
worked  for  commercial  purposes.  Nearly  every  outcrop  has 
been  opened,  however,  for  agricultural  lime.  Where  Goose 
Creek  crosses  this  belt  a  quarry  has  been  opened  and  good 
marble  taken  out,  but  want  of  transportation  facilities  has 
prevented  any  considerable  development.  The  relation  be- 
tween marble  and  schist  is  very  perfectly  shown  at  an  old 
quarry  west  of  Leesburg.  The  marble  occupies  two  beds  in 
schist,  and  between  the  two  rocks  there  is  gradation  of  com- 
position.    In  none  of  the  western  belts  are  the  calcareous 


32  HISTORY  OF 

beds  recrystallized  into  marbles,  but  all  retain  their  original 
character  of  blue  and  dove-colored  limestone.  None  of  them, 
however,  is  of  great  thickness  and  none  of  great  linear  extent. 

The  lyoudoun  formation,  of  course,  followed  a  period  of 
erosion  of  the  Catoctin  Belt,  since  it  is  the  first  subaqueous 
deposit.  It  is  especially  developed  with  respect  to  thickness 
and  coarseness  to  the  west  of  Catoctin  Mountain.  Elsewhere 
the  outcrops  are  almost  entirely  black  slate.  This  is  true 
along  the  Blue  Ridge,  through  almost  its  entire  length,  and 
also  through  the  entire  length  of  the  Catoctin  Mountain.  On 
the  latter  range  it  is  doubtful  if  this  formation  exceeds  200 
feet  in  thickness  at  any  point.  Along  the  Blue  Ridge  it  may, 
and  probably  does,  in  places,  reach  500  feet  in  thickness. 

The  distribution  of  the  coarse  varieties  coincides  closely 
with  the  areas  of  greatest  thickness  and  also  with  the  syn- 
clines  in  which  no  Weverton  sandstone  appears.  The  con- 
glomerates of  the  I^oudoun  formation  are  composed  of  epidotic 
schist,  andesite,  quartz,  granite,  epidote,  and  jasper  pebbles 
embedded  in  a  matrix  of  black  slate  and  are  very  limited  in 
extent. 

Weverton  Sandstone. 

The  formation  next  succeeding  the  Loudoun  formation  is  the 
Weverton  sandstone.  It  is  so  named  on  account  of  its  promi- 
nent outcrops  in  South  Mountain,  near  Weverton,  Maryland, 
and  consists  entirely  of  siliceous  fragments,  mainly  quartz 
and  feldspar.  Its  texture  varies  from  a  very  fine,  pure  sand- 
stone to  a  moderately  coarse  conglomerate,  but,  in  general, 
it  is  a  sandstone.  As  a  whole,  its  color  is  white  and  varies 
but  little;  the  coarse  beds  have  a  grayish  color  in  most  places. 
Frequent  bands  and  streaks  of  bluish  black  and  black  are 
added  to  the  white  sandstones,  especially  along  the  southern 
portion  of  the  Blue  Ridge.  The  appearance  of  the  rock  is 
not  modified  by  the  amount  of  feldspar  which  it  contains. 

From  the  distribution  of  these  various  fragments,  incon- 
spicuous as  they  are,  considerable  can  be  deduced  in  regard 
to  the  environment  of  the  Weverton  sandstone. 


I^OUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  35 

The  submergence  of  the  Catoctin  Belt  was  practically  com- 
plete, because  the  Weverton  sandstone  nowhere  touches  the 
crystalline  rocks.  Perhaps  it  were  better  stated  that  sub- 
mergence was  complete  in  the  basins  in  which  Weverton 
sandstone  now  appears.  Beyond  these  basins,  however,  it  is 
questionable  if  the  submergence  was  complete,  because  in 
the  Weverton  sandstone  itself  are  numerous  fragments  which 
could  have  been  derived  only  from  the  granite  masses.  These 
fragments  consist  of  blue  quartz,  white  quartz,  and  feldspar. 
The  blue  quartz  fragments  are  confined  almost  exclusively  to 
the  outcrops  of  the  Weverton  sandstone  in  the  Blue  Ridge 
south  of  the  Potomac,  and  are  rarely  found  on  Catoctin. 

The  general  grouping  of  the  I^oudoun  formation  into  two 
classes  of  deposit  (1),  the  fine  slates  associated  with  the 
Weverton  sandstone,  and  (2),  the  course  sandstones  occur- 
ring in  deep  synclines  with  no  Weverton,  raises  the  question 
of  the  unity  of  that  formation.  The  evidence  on  this  point 
is  manifold  and  apparently  conclusive.  The  general  compo- 
sition of  the  two  is  the  same — i.  e.,  beds  of  feldspathic,  sili- 
ceous material  derived  from  crystalline  rocks.  They  are 
similarly  metamorphosed  in  different  localities.  The  upper 
parts  of  the  thicker  series  are  slates  identical  in  appearance 
with  the  slates  under  the  Weverton,  which  presumably  rep- 
resent the  upper  Loudoun. 

A  marked  change  in  the  thickness  of  the  Weverton  sand- 
stone occurs  along  Catoctin  Mountain,  the  formation  dimin- 
ishing from  1,000  to  200  feet  in  a  few  miles.  This  plainly 
indicates  shore  conditions,  and  the  nature  of  the  accompany- 
ing change  of  constituent  material  locates  the  direction  of  the 
shore.  This  change  is  a  decrease  of  the  feldspar  amounting 
to  elimination  at  the  Potomac.  As  the  feldspar,  which  is 
granular  at  the  shore,  is  soon  reduced  to  fine  clay  and  washed 
away,  the  direction  of  its  disappearance  is  the  direction  of 
deep  water.  Thus  the  constitution  and  thickness  of  the 
Weverton  sandstone  unite  in  showing  the  existence  of  land 
not  far  northeast  of  Catoctin  Mountain  during  Weverton 
deposition. 


34  HISTORY  OF 

Aside  from  this  marked  change  in  thickness,  none  of  un- 
usual extent  appears  in  the  Weverton  sandstone  over  the 
remainder  of  the  Catoctin  Belt.  While  this  is  partly  due  to 
lack  of  complete  sections,  yet  such  as  are  complete  show  a 
substantial  uniformity.  The  sections  of  the  Blue  Ridge  out- 
crops range  around  500  feet,  and  those  of  the  Catoctin  line 
are  in  the  vicinity  of  3OO.  This  permanent  difference  in  thick- 
ness along  the  two  lines  can  be  attributed  to  an  eastward 
thinning  of  the  formation,  thus,  however,  implying  a  shore 
to  the  west  of  the  Blue  Ridge  line.  It  can  also  be  attributed 
to  the  existence  of  a  barrier  between  the  two,  and  this  agrees 
with  the  deductions  from  the  constituent  fragments. 

Newark  System, 

An  epoch  of  which  a  sedimentary  record  remains  in  the 
region  of  the  Catoctin  Belt  is  one  of  submergence  and  deposition, 
the  Newark  or  Juratrias.  The  formation,  though  developed  in 
the  Piedmont  plain,  bears  upon  the  history  of  the  Catoctin 
Belt  by  throwing  light  on  the  periods  of  degradation,  deposi- 
tion, igneous  injection,  and  deformation  that  have  involved 
them  both. 

At  the  Potomac  River  it  is  about  4  miles  in  width,  at  the 
latitude  of  Leesburg  about  10  miles  in  width,  and  thence  it 
spreads  towards  the  east  until  its  maximum  width  is,  perhaps, 
15  miles.  The  area  of  the  Newark  formation  is,  of  course, 
a  feature  of  erosion,  as  far  as  its  present  form  is  concerned. 
In  regard  to  its  former  extent  little  can  be  said,  except  what 
can  be  deduced  from  the  materials  of  the  formation  itself. 
Three  miles  southeast  of  Aldie  and  the  end  of  Bull  Run 
Mountain  a  ridge  of  Newark  sandstone  rises  to  500  feet.  The 
same  ridge  at  its  northern  end,  near  Goose  Creek,  attains  500 
feet  and  carries  a  gravel  cap.  One  mile  south  of  the  Potomac 
River  a  granite  ridge  rises  from  the  soluble  Newark  rocks  to 
the  same  elevation. 

As  a  whole  the  formation  is  a  large  body  of  red  calcareous 
and  argillaceous  sandstone  and  shale.     Into  this,  along  the 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  35 

northern  portion  of  the  Catoctin  Belt,  are  intercalated  con- 
siderable wedges  or  lenses  of  limestone  conglomerate.  At 
many  places  also  gray  feldspathic  sandstones  and  basal  con- 
glomerates appear. 

The  limestone  conglomerate  is  best  developed  from  the 
Potomac  to  lycesburg,  and  from  that  region  southward  rapidly 
diminishes  until  it  is  barely  represented  at  the  south  end  of 
Catoctin  Mountain. 

The  conglomerate  is  made  up  of  pebbles  of  limestone  of 
varying  sizes,  reaching  in  some  cases  a  foot  in  diameter,  but, 
as  a  rule,  averaging  about  2  or  3  inches.  The  pebbles  are 
usually  well  rounded,  but  sometimes  show  considerable 
angles.  The  pebbles  of  limestone  range  in  color  from  gray  to 
blue  and  dark  blue,  and  occasionally  pebbles  of  a  fine  white 
marble  are  seen ;  with  rare  exceptions  also  pebbles  of  Catoctin 
schist  and  quartz  occur.  They  are  embedded  in  a  red  cal- 
careous matrix,  sometimes  with  a  slight  admixture  of  sand. 
As  a  rule  the  entire  mass  is  calcareous. 

The  conglomerate  occurs,  as  has  been  said,  in  lenses  or 
wedges  in  the  sandstone  ranging  from  1  foot  to  500  feet  in 
thickness,  or  possibly  even  greater.  They  disappear  through 
complete  replacement  by  sandstone  at  the  same  horizon.  The 
wedge  may  thin  out  to  a  feather  edge  or  may  be  bodily  re- 
placed upon  its  strike  by  sandstone;  one  method  is  perhaps 
as  common  as  the  other.  The  arrangement  of  the  wedges  is 
very  instructive  indeed.  The  general  strike  of  the  Newark 
rocks  is  a  little  to  the  west  of  north,  while  the  strike  of  the 
Catoctin  Belt  is  a  little  to  the  east  of  north.  The  two  series, 
therefore,  if  extended,  would  cross  each  other  at  an  angle  of 
20  to  30  degrees.  The  conglomerate  wedges  are  collected 
along  the  west  side  of  the  Newark  Belt  and  in  contact  usually 
with  the  Weverton  sandstone.  The  thick  ends  of  the  wedges 
along  the  line  of  contact  usually  touch  each  other.  Going 
south  by  east  the  proportion  of  the  sandstone  increases  with 
rapid  extermination  of  the  conglomerate.  The  thin  ends  of 
the  wedges,  therefore,  resemble  a  series  of  spines  projecting 
outward  from  the  Catoctin  Belt. 


36  HISTORY  OF 

The  result  of  weathering  upon  the  conglomerate  is  a  very 
uneven  and  rugged  series  of  outcrops  projecting  above  the 
rolling  surface  of  the  soil. 

The  ledges  show  little  definite  stratification  and  very  little 
dip.  The  topography  of  the  conglomerate  is  inconspicuous 
and  consists  of  a  slightly  rolling  valley  without  particular 
features.  It  approaches  nearer  to  the  level  of  the  present 
drainage  than  any  other  formation,  and  decay  by  solution 
has  gone  on  to  a  very  considerable  extent.  Where  the  drain- 
ing streams  have  approached  their  baselevel,  scarcely  an  out- 
crop of  conglomerate  is  seen.  Where  the  areas  of  conglom- 
erate lie  near  faster  falling  streams,  the  irregular  masses  of 
un  weathered  rocks  appear. 

When  but  slightly  weathered  the  conglomerate  forms  an 
effective  decorative  stone  and  has  been  extensively  used  as  a 
marble  with  the  name  ' 'Potomac  marble,"  from  the  quarries 
on  the  Potomac  east  of  Point  of  Rocks,  Maryland.  While  it 
is  in  no  sense  a  marble,  yet  the  different  reds  and  browns  pro- 
duced by  unequal  weathering  of  the  limestone  pebbles  have 
a  very  beautiful  effect. 

The  thickness  of  the  Newark  formation  is  most  uncertain. 
The  rocks  dip  at  a  light  angle  to  the  west  with  hardly  an  ex- 
ception, and  the  sections  all  appear  to  be  continuous.  Even 
with  liberal  deductions  for  frequent  faults,  nothing  less  than 
3,000  feet  will  account  for  the  observed  areas  and  dips. 

Newark  Diabase. 

Description  of  the  lithified  deposits  would  be  far  from  com- 
plete without  reference  to  the  later  diabase  which  is  asso- 
ciated with  the  Newark  rocks. 

These  diabases,  as  they  will  be  called  generically,  are 
usually  composed  of  plagioclase  feldspar,  and  diallage  or 
augite;  additional  and  rarer  minerals  are  quartz,  olivine, 
hypersthene,  magnetite,  ilmenite,  and  hornblende.  Their 
structure  is  ophitic  in  the  finer  varieties,  and  to  some  extent 
in   the  coarser  kinds  as   well.    They  are  holocrystalline  in 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  37 

form  and  true  glassy  bases  are  rare,  rendering  the  term 
diabase  more  appropriate  than  basalt. 

There  is  greater  variety  in  texture,  from  fine  aphanitic 
traps  up  to  coarse  grained  dolerites  with  feldspars  one-third 
of  an  inch  long.  The  coarser  varieties  are  easily  quarried  and 
are  often  used  for  building  stone  under  the  name  of  granite. 

These  forms  are  retained  to  the  present  day  with  no 
material  change  except  that  of  immediate  weathering,  but  to 
alterations  of  this  kind  they  are  an  easy  prey,  and  yield  the 
most  characteristic  forms.  The  narrow  dikes  produce  ridges 
between  slight  valleys  of  sandstone  or  shale,  the  wide  bodies 
produce  broad  flat  hills  or  uplands.  The  rock  weathers  into 
a  fine  gray  and  brown  clay  with  numerous  bowlders  of 
unaltered  rock  of  a  marked  concentric  shape. 

While  the  diabase  dikes  are  most  prominent  in  the  Newark 
rocks,  they  are  also  found  occasionally  in  the  other  terraces. 
In  the  Catoctin  Belt  they  appear  irregularly  in  the  granite 
and  schist.  Rare  cases  also  occur  in  the  rocks  of  the  Pied- 
mont plain.  The  diabase  of  the  Newark  areas  is  almost  ex- 
clusively confined  to  the  red  sandstone,  and  the  dike  at  Lees- 
burg  cutting  the  limestone  conglomerate  is  almost  the  only 
occurrence  of  that  combination. 

The  diabase  occurs  only  as  an  intrusive  rock  in  the  vicinity 
of  the  Catoctin  Belt.  Of  this  form  of  occurrence,  however, 
there  are  two  types,  dikes  and  massive  sheets  or  masses.  The 
dikes  are  parallel  to  the  strike  of  the  inclosing  sandstone  as  a 
rule,  and  appear  to  have  their  courses  controlled  by  it  on 
account  of  their  small  bulk.  The  large  masses  break  at  ran- 
dom across  the  sandstone  in  the  most  eccentric  fashion.  No 
dislocation  can  be  detected  in  the  sandstones,  either  in  strike 
or  dip,  yet  of  course  it  must  exist  by  at  least  the  thickness  of 
the  intrusive  mass.  That  this  thickness  is  considerable  is 
shown  by  the  coarseness  of  the  larger  trap  masses,  which 
could  occur  only  in  bodies  of  considerable  size,  and  also  by 
the  width  of  their  outcrops  in  the  westward  dipping  sand- 
stones. The  chief  mass  in  point  of  size  is  three  miles  wide. 
This  mass  fast  decreases  in  width  as  it  goes  north,  without 


38  HISTORY  OF 

losing  much  of  its  coarseness,  and  ends  in  Leesburg  in  a 
hooked  curve.  The  outline  of  the  diabase  is  suggestive  of 
the  flexed  trap  sheets  of  more  northern  regions,  but  this 
appearance  is  deceptive,  since  the  diabase  breaks  directly 
across  both  red  sandstone  and  limestone  conglomerate,  which 
have  a  constant  north  and  south  strike.  An  eastern  branch 
of  this  mass  crosses  the  Potomac  as  a  small  dike  and  passes 
north  into  Pennsylvania.  The  diabase  dikes  in  the  Catoctin 
Belt  are  always  narrow,  and,  while  many  outcrops  occur  along 
a  given  line,  it  is  probable  that  they  are  not  continuous. 

At  lycesburg  the  limestone  conglomerate  next  the  diabase 
is  indurated,  its  iron  oxide  is  driven  off,  and  the  limestone 
oartly  crystallized  into  marble. 

Catoctin  Schist. 

The  Catoctin  schist  is  geographically  the  most  important 
of  the  volcanic  rocks  of  I^oudoun. 

Throughout  its  entire  area  the  schist  is  singularly  uniform 
in  appearance,  so  that  only  two  divisions  can  be  made  with 
any  certainty  at  all.  These  are  dependent  upon  a  secondary 
characteristic,  viz,  the  presence  of  epidote  in  large  or  small 
quantities.  The  epidote  occurs  in  the  form  of  lenses  arranged 
parallel  to  the  planes  of  schistosity,  reaching  as  high  as  five 
feet  in  thickness  and  grading  from  that  down  to  the  size  of 
minute  grains.  Accompanying  this  lenticular  epidote  is  a 
large  development  of  quartz  in  lenses,  which,  however,  do  not 
attain  quite  such  a  size  as  those  of  epidote.  Both  the  quartz 
and  epidote  are  practically  insoluble  and  lie  scattered  over  the 
surface  in  blocks  of  all  sizes.  In  places  they  form  an  almost 
complete  carpet  and  protect  the  surface  from  removal.  The 
resulting  soil,  where  not  too  heavily  encumbered  with  the 
epidote  blocks,  is  rich  and  well  adapted  to  farming,  on 
account  of  the  potash  and  calcium  contained  in  the  epidote 
and  feldspar. 

Except  along  the  narrow  canyons  in  the  Tertiary  baselevel 
the  rock  is  rarely  seen  unless  badly  weathered.     The  light 


IvOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  39 

bluish  green  color  of  the  fresh  rock  changes  on  exposure  to  a 
dull  gray  or  yellow,  and  the  massive  ledges  and  slabs  split  up 
into  thin  schistose  layers.  It  is  quite  compact  in  appearance, 
and  as  a  rule  very  few  macroscopic  crystals  can  be  seen  in  it. 

A  general  separation  can  be  made  into  an  epidotic  division 
characterized  by  an  abundance  of  macroscopic  epidote  and  a 
non-epidotic  division  with  microscopic  epidote.  These  divi- 
sions are  accented  by  the  general  finer  texture  of  the  epidotic 
schist. 

The  schists  can  be  definitely  called  volcanic  in  many  cases, 
from  macroscopic  characters,  such  as  the  component  minerals 
and  basaltic  arrangement.  In  most  cases,  the  services  of  the 
microscope  are  necessary  to  determine  their  nature.  Many 
varieties  have  lost  all  of  their  original  character  in  the  second- 
ary schistosity.  None  the  less,  its  origin  as  diabase  can  defi- 
nitely be  asserted  of  the  whole  mass.  In  view  of  the  fact, 
however,  that  most  of  the  formation  has  a  well  defined 
schistosity  destroying  its  diabasic  characters,  and  now  is  not 
a  diabase  but  a  schist,  it  seems  advisable  to  speak  of  it  as  a 
schist. 

Sections  of  the  finer  schist  in  polarized  light  show  many 
small  areas  of  quartz  and  plagioclase  and  numerous  crystals 
of  epidote,  magnetite,  and  chlorite,  the  whole  having  a 
marked  parallel  arrangement.  Only  in  the  coarser  varieties  is 
the  real  nature  of  the  rock  apparent.  In  these  the  ophitic  ar- 
rangement of  the  coarse  feldspars  is  well  defined,  and  in  spite 
of  ;their  subsequent  alteration  the  fragments  retain  the 
crystal  outlines  and  polarize  together.  Additional  minerals 
found  in  the  coarse  schists  are  calcite,  ilmenite,  skeleton 
oblivine,  biotite,  and  hematite. 

•  Rocks  of  the  Piedmont  Plain. 

The  Piedmont  plain,  where  it  borders  upon  the  Catoctin 
Belt,  is  composed  in  the  main  of  the  previously  described 
Newark  strata,  red  sandstone,  and  limestone  conglomerate. 
East  of  the  Newark  areas  lies  a  broad  belt  of  old  crystalline 
rocks,  whose  relations  to  the  Catoctin  Belt  are  unknown. 


40  HISTORY  OF 

The  rocks,  in  a  transverse  line,  beginning  a  little  to  the 
east  of  Dranesville,  in  Fairfax  County,  and  extending  to  the 
Catoctin  Mountain,  near  I^eesburg,  occur  in  the  following 
order,  viz:  Red  sandstone,  red  shale,  greenstone,  trap,  red- 
dish slate,  and  conglomerate  limestone. 

Heavy  dykes  of  trap  rock  extend  across  the  lower  end  of 
the  County,  from  near  the  mouth  of  Goose  Creek  to  the 
Prince  William  line.  "These,  being  intrusive  rocks,  have  in 
some  places  displaced  the  shale  and  risen  above  it,  while  in 
other  places  a  thin  coat  of  shale  remains  above  the  trappean 
matter,  but  much  altered  and  changed  in  character."*  A 
large  mass  of  trap  rock  presents  itself  boldly  above  the  shale 
at  the  eastern  abutment  of  the  Broad  Run  bridge,  on  the 
Leesburg  and  Alexandria  turnpike.  Not  far  to  the  east  the 
shale  is  changed  to  a  black  or  blackish  brown  color,  while  at 
the  foot  of  the  next  hill  still  farther  eastward  the  red  shale 
appears  unchanged.  The  summits  of  many  of  these  dykes 
are  * 'covered  with  a  whitish  or  yellowish  compact  shale, 
highly  indurated  and  changed  into  a  rock  very  difficult  to 
decompose,  "t 

Lafayette  Formation. 

A  great  class  of  variations  due  to  rock  character  are  those 
of  surface  form.  The  rocks  have  been  exposed  to  the  action 
of  erosion  during  many  epochs,  and  have  yielded  differently 
according  to  their  natures.  Different  stages  in  the  process  of 
erosion  can  be  distinguished  and  to  some  extent  correlated 
with  the  time  scale  of  the  rocks  in  other  regions.  One  such 
stage  is  particularly  manifest  in  the  Catoctin  Belt  and  fur- 
nishes the  datum  by  which  to  place  other  stages.  It  is  also 
best  adapted  for  study,  because  it  is  connected  directly  with 
the  usual  time  scale  by  its  associated  deposits.  This  stage 
is  the  Tertiary  baselevel,  and  the  deposit  is  the  Lafayette 
formation,  a  deposit  of  coarse  gravel  and  sand  lying  hori- 
zontally upon  the  edges  of  the  hard  rocks.    Over  the  Coastal 

^Taylor's  Memoir. 
t  Ibid. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  41 

plain  and  the  eastern  part  of  the  Piedmont  plain  it  is  con- 
spicuously developed,  and  composes  a  large  proportion  of 
their  surfaces.  As  the  formation  is  followed  westward  it  is 
more  and  more  dissected  by  erosion  and  finally  removed. 
Near  the  area  of  the  Catoctin  Belt  it  occurs  in  several  places, 
all  of  them  being  small  in  area.  One  is  three  miles  northeast 
of  Aldie.  Here,  a  Newark  sandstone  hill  is  capped  with 
gravel.  This  gravel  is  much  disturbed  by  recent  erosion  and 
consists  rather  of  scattered  fragments  than  of  a  bedded  deposit. 
The  materials  of  the  Lafayette  gravel  are  chiefly  pebbles 
and  grains  of  quartz,  with  a  considerable  admixture  of  quart- 
zite  and  sandstone.  The  large  quartz  pebbles  were  probably 
derived  from  the  large  lenses  of  quartz  in  the  Catoctin  schist, 
for  no  other  formation  above  water  at  the  time  contained 
quartz  in  large  enough  masses  to  furnish  such  pebbles.  On 
the  hypothesis  that  they  were  of  local  origin  and  merely 
worked  over  during  submergence,  they  might  be  connected 
with  the  quartz  veins  of  the  Piedmont  plain.  That  theory, 
however,  with  difficulty  accounts  for  their  well-rounded  con- 
dition, which  shows  either  beach  action  or  long  carriage.  The 
quartz  sand  may  well  have  been  derived  from  the  granitic 
quartzes,  but  that  is  an  uncertain  matter.  The  sandstones 
and  quartzites  are  usually  massive  and  pure  white,  of  the 
variety  found  along  Catoctin  and  Bull  Run  mountains.  Other 
varieties  of  sandstone — the  blue-banded  type,  for  instance — 
are  derived  from  the  Weverton  sandstone  on  the  Blue  Ridge. 
The  white  sandstone  pebbles  in  the  terraces  along  Bull  Run 
Mountain  can  be  traced  from  the  ledges  to  the  deposits.  In 
this  region,  therefore,  an  absolute  shore  can  be  seen.  In 
other  areas  along  Catoctin  Mountain  a  shore  can  be  inferred, 
because  the  mountain  projects  above  the  baselevel  plane  and 
contains  no  gravel  deposits.  In  fact,  only  a  few  points  at  the 
stream  gaps  are  cut  down  to  the  baselevel. 

Metamorphism . 

Dynamic  metamorphism  has  produced  great  rearrangement 
of  the  minerals  along  the  eastern  side  of  the  Catoctin  Belt, 

45-4 


42  HISTORY  OF 

and  results  at  times  in  complete  obliteration  of  the  characters 
of  the  granite.  The  first  step  in  the  change  was  the  cracking 
of  the  quartz  and  feldspar  crystals  and  development  of  mus- 
covite  and  chlorite  in  the  cracks.  This  was  accompanied  by 
a  growth  of  muscovite  and  quartz  in  the  unbroken  feldspar. 
The  aspect  of  the  rock  at  this  stage  is  that  of  a  gneiss- with 
rather  indefinite  banding.  Further  action  reduced  the  rock  to 
a  collection  of  angular  and  rounded  fragments  of  granite, 
quartz,  and  feldspar  in  a  matrix  of  quartz  and  mica,  the  mica 
lapping  around  the  fragments  and  rudely  parallel  to  their 
surfaces.  The  last  stage  was  complete  pulverization  of  the 
fragments  and  elongation  into  lenses,  the  feldspathic  material 
entirely  recomposing  into  muscovite,  chlorite,  and  quartz, 
and  the  whole  mass  receiving  a  strong  schistosity,  due  to  the 
arrangement  of  the  mica  plates  parallel  to  the  elongation. 
This  final  stage  is  macroscopically  nothing  more  than  a  sili- 
ceous slate  or  schist,  and  is  barely  distinguishable  from  the 
end  products  of  similar  metamorphism  in  the  more  feldspathic 
schists  and  the  I^oudoun  sandy  slates.  The  different  steps 
can  readily  be  traced,  however,  both  in  the  hand  specimen 
and  under  the  microscope. 

The  Weverton  sandstone  has  suffered  less  from  metamor- 
phism than  any  of  the  sediments.  In  the  Blue  Ridge  it  has 
undergone  no  greater  change  than  a  slight  elongation  of  its 
particles  and  development  of  a  little  mica.  Along  Catoctin 
Mountain,  from  the  Potomac  River  south,  however,  increased 
alteration  appears  together  with  the  diminution  in  thickness. 
What  little  feldspar  there  was  is  reduced  to  quartz  and  mica, 
and  the  quartz  pebbles  are  drawn  out  into  lenses.  Deposition 
of  secondary  quartz  becomes  prominent,  amounting  in  the 
latitude  of  Goose  Creek  to  almost  entire  recrystallization  of 
the  mass.  A  marked  schistosity  accompanies  this  alteration, 
and  most  of  the  schistose  planes  are  coated  with  silvery  mus- 
covite. Almost  without  exception  these  planes  are  parallel 
to  the  dip  of  the  formation. 

Metamorphism  of  the  Loudoun  formation  is  quite  general. 
It  commonly  appears  in  the  production  of  phyllites  from  the 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  43 

ar<?illaceous  members  of  the  formation,  but  all  of  the  f rag- 
mental  varieties  show  some  elongation  and  production  of 
secondary  mica.  The  limestone  beds  are  often  metamor- 
phosed to  marble,  but  only  in  the  eastern  belt.  The  recrys- 
tallization  is  not  very  extensive,  and  none  of  the  marbles  are 
coarse  grained. 

The  metamorphism  of  the  igneous  rocks  is  regional  in  na- 
ture and  has  the  same  increase  from  west  to  east  as  the  sedi- 
ments. 

In  the  granite  it  consists  of  various  stages  of  change  in 
form,  attended  by  some  chemical  rearrangement.  The  pro- 
cess consisted  of  progressive  fracture  and  reduction  of  the 
crystals  of  quartz  and  feldspar,  and  was  facilitated  by  the 
frequent  cleavage  cracks  of  the  large  feldspars.  It  produced 
effects  varying  from  granite  with  a  rude  gneissoid  appearance, 
through  a  banded  fine  gneiss,  into  a  fine  quartz  schist  or  slate. 
These  slaty  and  gneissoid  planes  are  seen  to  be  parallel  to  the 
direction  and  attitude  of  the  sediments,  wherever  they  are 
near  enough  for  comparison. 

Dynamic  alteration  of  the  Catoctin  diabase  is  pronounced 
and  wide-spead.  Macroscopically  it  is  evident  in  the  strong 
schistosity,  which  is  parallel  to  the  structural  planes  of  the 
sediments  when  the  two  are  in  contact.  In  most  areas  this 
alteration  is  mainly  chemical  and  has  not  affected  the  original 
proportions  of  the  rock  to  a  marked  extent.  Its  prevalence  is 
due  to  the  unstable  composition  of  the  original  minerals  of 
the  rock,  such  as  olivine,  hypersthene,  and  pyroxene.  Along 
Catoctin  Mountain,  however,  both  chemical  and  mechanical 
deformation  have  taken  place,  so  that  the  original  rock  struc- 
ture is  completely  merged  into  pronounced  schistosity.  This 
was  materially  assisted  by  the  weak  lath  shapes  of  the  feld- 
spar and  the  mobility  of  the  micas. 

The  average  dip  of  the  schistose  planes  is  about  60°;  from 
this  they  vary  up  to  90°  and  down  to  20°.  In  all  cases  they 
are  closely  parallel  to  the  planes  on  which  the  sediments  moved 
in  adjustment  to  folding,  namely,  the  bedding  planes.  In  re- 
gions where  no  sediments  occur,  the  relation  of  the  schistose 
planes  to  the  folds  can  not  be  discovered. 


44  HISTORY  OF 

Parallel  with  the  micas  that  cause  the  schistosity,  the 
growth  of  the  quartz  and  epidote  lenses  took  place.  These, 
too,  have  been  deformed  by  crushing  and  stretching  along 
Bull  Run  Mountain  and  the  south  part  of  Catoctin  Mountain. 
From  this  fact,  taken  in  connection  with  the  folding  of  the 
schistose  planes  at  Point  of  Rocks,  it  would  appear  that  the 
deforrdation  was  not  a  single  continuous  effort. 

The  ratios  of  schistose  deformation  in  the  igneous  rocks  are 
as  follows:  diabase,  with  unstable  mineral  composition  and 
small  mechanical  strength,  has  yielded  to  an  extreme  degree; 
granite,  with  stable  composition  and  moderate  mechanical 
strength,  has  yielded  to  the  more  pronounced  compression. 


MINERAL  AND  KINDRED  DEPOSITS. 

In  point  of  mineral  wealth  I^oudoun  ranks  with  the  foremost 
counties  of  the  State.  Iron,  copper,  silver,  soapstone,  asbes- 
tos, hydraulic  limestone,  barytes,  and  marble  are  some  of  the 
deposits  that  have  been  developed  and  worked  with  a  greater 
or  lesser  degree  of  success. 

A  large  bed  of  compact  red  oxide  of  iron  lies  at  the  eastern 
base  of  the  Catoctin  Mountain,  on  the  margin  of  the  Potomac 
River.  I<ong  before  the  Civil  War  a  furnace  was  erected  here 
by  Samuel  Clapham,  Sr.,  for  the  reduction  of  this  ore,  and 
considerable  quantities  of  it  were  formerly  transported  mod- 
erate distances  to  supply  other  furnaces.  The  Clapham 
furnace  continued  in  operation  until  all  the  fuel  at  hand  was  con- 
sumed and  then  went  out  of  blast.  Water  power  was  supplied 
by  the  Catoctin  Creek,  which  flows  into  the  river  immediately 
above  the  mountain.  To  obtain  this  a  tunnel  was  cut  through 
a  spur  of  the  mountain  projecting  into  a  bend  of  the  creek. 
This  tunnel,  about  five  hundred  feet  long  and  sixty  feet  be- 
neath the  summit  of  the  hill,  was  cut  through  almost  a  solid 
wall  of  rock,  and,  at  that  day,  was  considered  a  great  work. 

Magnetic  iron  ore  has  been  found  in  certain  places,  and 
this  or  a  similar  substance  has  a  disturbing  effect  upon  the 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  45 

needle  of  the  surveyor's  compass,  rendering  surveying  ex- 
tremely difficult  where  great  accuracy  is  required.  In  some 
instances  the  needle  has  been  drawn  as  much  as  seven  degrees 
from  its  true  course.  This  effect  is  more  or  less  observable 
nearly  throughout  the  Catoctin  Mountain,  and  has  been  noted 
elsewhere  in  the  County. 

Chromate  of  iron  was  long  ago  discovered  along  Broad 
Run,  and,  about  the  same  time,  a  bed  of  micaceous  iron  ore 
on  Goose  Creek  below  the  I^eesburg  turnpike.  Copper  ore  is 
associated  with  the  last-named  mineral. 

In  i860,  the  output  of  pig  iron  in  Loudoun  was  2,250  tons, 
and  its  value  $58,000.  Rockbridge  was  the  only  Virginia 
County  to  exceed  these  figures. 

In  several  localities  small  angular  lumps  of  a  yellowish  sub- 
stance, supposed  to  contain  sulphur,  have  been  found,  em- 
bedded in  rocks.  When  subjected  to  an  intense  heat,  it  gives 
forth  a  pungent  sulphurous  odor. 

Small  quantities  of  silver  ore  are  discovered  from  time  to 
time;  but  the  leads  have  never  been  extensively  worked  and 
many  of  the  richest  veins  are  still  untouched. 

Deposits  of  copper  in  the  schists  have  long  excited  interest 
and  led  to  mining  operations.  The  amount  of  ore,  however, 
appears  not  to  have  justified  any  considerable  work. 

Near  the  base  of  the  Catoctin  Mountain,  where  it  is  first 
approached  by  Goose  Creek,  marble  of  an  excellent  quality 
is  found  but  has  been  little  worked.  Among  the  varieties  at 
the  quarry  are  included  pure  white,  white  and  pink,  blue  and 
white,  white  and  green,  serpentinized  and  chloritic  serpen- 
tinized  marble.  These  marbles  are  of  great  beauty  and  sus- 
ceptible of  a  good  polish.  The  calcareous  bed  here  is  about 
fifty  feet  thick  and  reaches  southward  for  three  miles  with 
increasing  thickness.  At  its  southern  end  it  is  not  entirely 
metamorphosed  into  marble,  but  retains  its  original  character 
of  fine  blue  limestone.  Northward  along  this  range  the  thick- 
ness of  the  marble  constantly  diminishes  and  rarely  exceeds  ten 
feet.  Sometimes  there  are  two  beds,  sometimes  only  one.  At 
Taylorstown,  just  south  of  the  Potomac,  the  bed  is  about  three 


46  HISTORY  OF 

feet  thick;  on  the  north  side  of  the  Potomac  about  four  or 
five  feet.  Here,  as  elsewhere,  the  beds  of  marble  are  inclosed 
in  a  bluish  green  micaceous  schist,  which  has  been  thor- 
oughly transformed  by  mechanical  pressure. 

In  the  vicinity  of  lyeesburg  and  north  of  that  town,  and 
between  the  Catoctin  Mountain  and  the  Potomac  River,  the 
conglomerate  limestone  or  brecciated  marble  is  found  in  abun- 
dance, associated  with  red  shale.  It  is  a  calcareous  rock, 
apparently  formed  in  part  of  pebbles  cemented  together  and, 
when  burned,  produces  an  inferior  lime.  It  is  commonly 
known  as  Potomac  marble.  Of  this  variegated  marble  were 
formed  the  beautiful  columns  in  the  old  Representatives' 
chamber  of  the  Capitol  at  Washington.  The  soil  in  which  this 
rock  occurs  is  extremely  productive  and  valuable. 

The  exhibition  at  the  World's  Fair,  at  New  Orleans,  of  the 
following  specimens  of  Loudoun  minerals  claimed  much  inter- 
est from  visiting  mineraloguists: 

1.  Specular  Iron  Ore,  from  near  Leesburg,  said  to  be  in 
quantity.     From  Professor  Fontaine. 

2.  Chalcopyrite,  from  near  Leesburg,  said  to  be  a  promising 
vein.     From  Professor  Fontaine. 

The  following  were  contributed  by  the  "Eagle  Mining 
Company,"  of  Leesburg;  F.  A.  Wise,  general  manager: 

1.  Carbonate  o/  Copper,  from  vein  y  wide,  developed  to  25' 
deep.  Assays  by  Oxford  Copper  Company  of  New  York  give  5 1 
per  cent  of  copper  and  27  ounces  of  silver  per  ton. 

2.  Sulphuret  of  Copper,  from  vein  IC  wide,  developed  to  50' 
deep.  Assays  by  Oxford  Copper  Company  of  New  York  give 
VIYt,  per  cent  of  copper. 

3.  Iron  Ore,  from  vein  4'  wide  and  50'  deep.  Yields  55  per 
cent  metallic  iron  by  assay  of  W.  P.  Lawver,  of  U.  S.  Mint. 

4-  Sulphuret  of  Copper,  from  vein  developed  50'. 
Yields  11  per  cent  of  copper  and  1  ounce  of  silver  per  ton  by 
assay  of  W.  P.  Lawver,  U.  S.  Mint. 

5.  Carbonate  of  Copper,  red  oxide  and  glance,  from  vein  y 
wide,  developed  to  25'  deep.  Yields  50  per  cent  metallic  cop- 
per and  27  ounces  silver  per  ton  by  assays. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  47 

6.  Iron  Ore,  from  vein  2'  to  A'  wide,  developed  50^.    Yield  55 
per  cent  metallic  iron. 

7.  Oxide  of  Copper^  from  Carbonate  vein,  developed  6(y  on 
4'  wide  vein;  25'  deep. 

8.  Sulpkuret  of  Copper,  from  vein  8"  to  15''  wide,  developed 
50'. 

9.  Iron  Ore, 

10.  BaryteSy  heavy  spar,  vein  undeveloped. 

11.  Iron  Ore  J  from  50'  level  of  Eagle  Mining  Company's 
shaft. 

12.  Marble,  from  quarry  of  "Virginia  Marble  Company," 
three  miles  east  from  Middleburg.  The  deposit  has  been 
demonstrated  to  be  of  great  extent;  the  marble  has  been 
pronounced  of  a  very  superior  quality.  Contributed  by  Major 
B.  P.  Noland. 

13.  Marble,  from  same  as  above. 

17.  Copper  Ore,  James  Pinkham,  from  Virginia  Department 
of  Agriculture. 

In  the  ''Handbook  on  the  Minerals  and  Mineral  Resources 
of  Virginia''  prepared  by  the  Virginia  Commission  to  the 
St.  lyouis  Exposition,  Loudoun  is  credited  with  the  three 
comparatively  rare  minerals  given  below.  The  two  first- 
named  occur  nowhere  else  in  the  State. 

*'AcTiNQiviTE:  Calcium-magnesium-iron,  Amphibole, 

Ca(MgFe)3(Si04)3. 
Specific    Gravity,    3-3-2.     Hardness,     <,-6.     Streak,    un- 
colored.     .     .     .     Fine    radiated    olive-green    crystals    are 
found     ...     at  Taylorstown     .     .     .     .     " 

"TrKmolite:  a  variety  of  Amphibole.     Calcium. 

Magnesium  Amphibole.    Ca  Mg2  (Si  04)3. 

Specific  Gravity,  2.9-3.1.  Hardness,  5.6.  Long  bladed 
crystals;  also  columnar  and  fibrous.  Color,  white  and  grayish. 


48  HISTORY  OF 

Sometimes  nearly  transparent.  Found  in  the  greenish  talcose 
rocks  at  Taylorstown." 

Ckromite,  of  which  no  occurrence  of  economic  importance 
has  yet  been  discovered  in  the  County  or  elsewhere  in  Vir- 
ginia. 

*  '*0n  the  eastern  flank  of  the  Catoctin  rests  a  thin  belt  of  mica 
slate.  This  rock  is  composed  of  quartz  and  mica  in  varying 
proportions,  and  this  belt,  on  reaching  the  Bull  Run  Moun- 
tain, there  expands  itself,  and  forms  the  whole  base  of  that 
mountain,  and  where  the  mica  predominates,  as  it  does  there, 
it  sometimes  forms  excellent  flagging  stones." 

"Immediately  at  the  western  base  of  the  Catoctin  Mountain, 
a  range  of  magnesian  or  talcose  slates  occur  traversing  its 
whole  length.  ...  In  this  range  a  vein  of  magnesian 
limestone  is  met  with,  and  is  exposed  in  several  places.  It 
however  is  narrow,  in  some  places  only  a  few  feet  in  thickness, 
and  being  diflScult  to  obtain  is  not  much  sought  after  for 
burning, ' ' 

"Along  the  eastern  side  of  the  valley  (I^oudoun)  gneiss  is 
frequently  met  with  on  the  surface,  and  where  the  larger 
streams  have  worn  deep  valleys,  it  is  sometimes  exposed  in 
high  and  precipitous  cliffs.  This  is  more  particularly  the 
case  along  Goose  Creek  and  Beaver  Dam.  Associated  with 
it,  however,  is  clay  slate,  not  so  much  in  rock  as  in  soil,  for 
it  being  more  readily  decomposed  is  seldom  found  on  the  sur- 
face, except  as  soil.  These  two  varieties  are  often  met  with 
side  by  side  in  thin  layers,  and  their  combination  at  the  sur- 
face forms  a  peculiarly  favorable  soil  for  agricultural  pur- 
poses. The  gneiss  from  the  quartz  it  contains  makes  a  sandy 
soil,  while  the  clay  slate  gives  it  tenacity.  This  happy  com- 
bination is  a  prevailing  feature  of  this  entire  valley,  and  ren- 
ders it  one  of  the  best  farming  sections  in  Virginia. 

"Another  rock  that  is  a  valuable  acquisition  is  hornblende. 
This  kind  when  first  taken  from  the  ground,  is  always  cov 

*Taylor*s  Memoir. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  49 

ered  as  with  a  coat  of  rust.  This  is  doubtless  the  fact,  for 
the  oxydasion  of  the  iron  it  contains  gives  it  that  appearance, 
and  colors  the  soil  a  reddish  hue  in  its  immediate  vicinity. 
Wherever  this  rock  abounds,  the  soil  is  durable  and  the  crops 
are  usually  heavy.  It  is  sometimes  met  with  having  a  fine 
grain,  and  so  very  hard  as  to  be  almost  brittle,  though  gen- 
erally very  diflQcut  to  break,  and  when  broken  strongly  re- 
sembling cast-iron,  and  will  sometimes  ring,  on  being  struck, 
almost  as  clearly.  It  was  used  very  much  formerly  for  mak- 
ing journals  to  run  mill-gudgeons  upon.  When  found  on  the 
surface,  it  is  usually  of  a  rounded  form.     .     .     .     " 

However,  much  of  the  rock  of  the  valley  partakes  of  the 
nature  of  both  hornblend  and  gneiss,  and  has  been  aptly 
termed  a  "hornblend  gneiss  rock." 

Beds  of  magnesian  or  talcose  slate,  sometimes  containing 
crystals  of  sulphuret  of  iron,  are  frequently  met  with  in  this 
section,  and  at  the  base  of  Black  Oak  Ridge,  which  is  com- 
posed chiefly  of  chlorite  slate  and  epidote,  another  bed  of 
magnesian  limestone  is  found.  Containing  about  40  per  cent 
of  magnesia,  it  makes  an  excellent  cement  for  walls,  but  is  of 
little  or  no  value  as  a  fertilizer. 


SOILS.* 

The  soils  of  Loudoun  vary  greatly  in  both  geological  char- 
acter and  productiveness,  every  variety  from  a  rich  alluvial 
to  an  unproductive  clay  occurring  within  her  boundaries.  In 
general  the  soils  are  deep  and  rich  and  profitably  cultivated. 

The  heavy  clay  soils  of  Loudoun  are  recognized  as  being 
the  strongest  wheat  and  grass  soils.  The  more  loamy  soils 
are  better  for  corn  on  account  of  the  possibility  of  more 
thorough  cultivation.  However,  the  lands  all  have  to  be  fer- 
tilized or  limed  to  obtain  the  best  results,  and  with  this  added 

*For  the  bulk  of  the  information  appearing  under  this  caption  the 
author  is  indebted  to  Carter's  and  Lyman's  Soil  Survey  of  the  Leeshurg 
Area,  published  in  1904  by  the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture. 


50  HISTORY  OF 

expense  the  profit  in  wheat  growing  is  extremely  uncettain 
on  any  but  the  clay  soils.  The  loamy  soils  are  especially 
adapted  to  corn,  stock  raising,  and  dairying,  and  they  are 
largely  used  for  these  purposes.  The  mountain  sandstone 
soils,  which  are  rough  and  stony,  are  not  adapted  to  any  form 
of  agriculture;  but  for  some  lines  of  horticulture — as,  for  in- 
stance, the  production  of  grapes,  peaches,  apples  and  chest- 
nuts— or  forestry  they  seem  to  offer  excellent  opportuni- 
ties. The  schist  soil  of  the  mountains,  although  rough  and 
stony,  is  productive,  easily  worked,  and  especially  adapted  to 
apples,  peaches,  and  potatoes.  The  shale  and  mica  soils, 
although  thin  and  leachy,  are  especially  adapted  to  grapes, 
vegetables,  and  berries,  and  other  small  fruits.  These  soils 
should  be  managed  very  carefully  to  obtain  the  best  results. 
They  are  easily  worked  and  very  quickly  respond  to  fertiliza- 
tion and  thorough  cultivation.  It  is  very  probable  that 
market  gardening  and  fruit  raising  on  these  types  would 
prove  profitable.  It  seems,  however,  that  peach  trees  are 
short  lived  on  these  soils.  The  meadow  lands  are  low  and 
subject  to  overflow,  although  otherwise  well  drained.  They 
are  best  adapted  to  the  production  of  corn,  grass,  and  vege- 
tables. 

That  part  of  the  County  lying  east  of  a  line  drawn  from 
the  Potomac  River  near  Leesburg,  by  Aldie  to  the  Fauquier 
line,  is  much  more  unproductive  than  the  western  portion, 
partly  on  account  of  an  inferior  soil,  and  partly  in  con- 
sequence of  an  exhausting  system  of  cultivation,  once  so 
common  in  eastern  Virginia,  i.  e.,  cropping  with  corn  and 
tobacco  without  attempting  to  improve  the  quality  of  the  soil. 
When  impoverished,  the  lands  were  thrown  out  to  the  com- 
mons. 

Large  tracts  that  formerly  produced  from  thirty  to  forty 
bushels  of  corn  to  the  acre,  still  remain  out  of  cultivation, 
though  many  of  the  present  proprietors  are  turning  their 
attention  to  the  improvement  of  these  soils  and  are  being  richly 
rewarded. 

In  this  section,  particularly  along  Goose  Creek,  trap-rock 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  51 

occurs,  sometimes  covering  large  surfaces,  at  other  tjmes 
partially  covered  with  indurated  shale,  formed  from  the  red 
shale  of  this  region  which  has  become  hardened  by  the  heat 
of  the  intruding  trap.  Where  this  rock  occurs  covering  large 
surfaces,  nearly  level,  "the  soil  is  a  dark  brown  colored  clay, 
very  retentive  of  moisture  and  betteradapted  tograssthan  grain. 
.  .  .  A  deficiency  of  lime  probably  occurs  here,  and  there 
may  be  some  obnoxious  ingredient  present.  Minute  grains  of 
iron  sand  are  generally  interspersed  through  this  rock,  and  as 
it  is  not  acted  upon  by  atmospheric  influences,  its  combina- 
tion may  contain  some  acid  prejudicial  to  vegetation.  Where 
this  rock  is  thrown  into  more  irregular  elevations,  and  is  ap- 
parently more  broken  up,  the  soil  is  better."* 

Near  the  Broad  Run  Bridge  the  soil  is  deplorably  sterile. 
"In  many  places  it  is  but  a  few  inches  in  thickness,  and  the 
rock  below,  being  compact,  prevents  the  water  from  penetrat- 
ing much  below  the  surface,  thus  causing  an  excess  of  water 
in  rainy  weather,  and  a  scarcity  of  it  in  fair  weather.  The 
red  shale  does  not  appear  to  decompose  readily,  as  it  is  found 
a  short  distance  beneath  the  surface,  and  the  strata  dipping 
at  a  low  angle,  prevents  the  water  from  freely  descending  into 
this  kind  of  soil."t 

There  is  a  huge  belt  of  red  land,  known  as  "the  red  sand- 
stone formation,"  extending  from  the  Potomac  through  a 
part  of  each  of  the  counties  of  Loudoun^  Fairfax,  Prince  Wil- 
liam, Fauquier,  Culpeper,  and  Orange,  which,  with  judicious 
cultivation,  might  be  rendered  liberally  productive.  Professor 
W.  B.  Rogers,  in  his  report  to  the  legislature  of  Virginia,  in 
1840,  described  it  under  the  head  of  the  "secondary  forma- 
tion in  the  northern  district."  "The  general  form  of  this 
area,"  he  wrote,  "is  that  of  a  prolonged  triangle,  extending 
in  a  direction  from  SSW.  to  NNE.,  having  its  apex  at 
the  southern  extremity,  and  gradually  expanding  until  it 
reaches  the  Potomac.  Measured  at  a  point  on  the  Potomac 
between  the  mouths  of  Goose  Creek  and  Broad  Run,  its  length 


■^Taylor's  Memoir. 
tibid. 


52  HISTORY  OF 

is  about  80  miles.  Its  greatest  breadth,  as  measured  near  the 
Potomac,  and  parallel  to  the  road  leading  from  Leesburg  to 
Dranesville,  is  about  15  miles.  This,  in  round  numbers, 
gives  600  square  miles  for  the  area  of  this  region." 

Bottom  lands  of  inexhaustible  fertility  and  rich  upland 
loams  are  commonly  met  with  north  and  south  of  Leesburg 
for  a  considerable  distance  on  either  side  of  the  turnpike  lead- 
ing from  Point  of  Rocks,  Md.,  at  one  extremity  of  the  County 
to  Middleburg  at  the  other. 

lyimestone  occurs  in  vast  quantities  throughout  this  zone, 
and  there  are  present  all  the  propitious  elements  that  will  be 
enumerated  in  the  treatment  of  the  soils  of  other  areas. 

The  land  here  is  in  a  high  state  of  cultivation  and,  accord- 
ing to  its  peculiarly  varying  and  unalterable  adaptability, 
produces  enormous  crops  of  all  the  staple  grains  of  the  County. 

The  soil  in  the  vicinity  of  Oatlands,  included  in  this  zone, 
is  stiff  and  stony,  except  such  as  is  adjacent  to  water  courses, 
or  the  base  of  hills,  where  it  is  enriched  by  liberal  supplies  of 
decayed  matter,  which  render  it  loamy  and  inexhaustible.  In 
the  main,  it  is  of  a  generous  quality,  so  pertinaciously  retain- 
ing fertilizers  as  to  withstand  the  washing  of  the  heaviest 
rains.  Still  it  is  an  anomaly  that  some  of  the  richest  areas  in 
this  region  will  not  produce  wheat;  while,  in  the  cultivation 
of  rye,  oats,  and  corn,  satisfactory  results  are  almost  invari- 
ably obtained.  lyikewise  there  are  but  a  few  parcels  whereon 
white  clover  does  not  grow  spontaneously  and  in  the  greatest 
abundance.  Than  these,  better  pasture  lands  are  found 
nowhere  east  of  the  Blue  Ridge.  Limestone  occurs  here  in 
vast  quantities. 

In  the  Valley  of  Loudoun,  between  the  Catoctin  and  Blue 
Ridge  mountains,  the  soil  is  formed  from  gneiss,  clay-slate, 
hornblend,  greenstone,  and  quartz.  The  happy  combination 
of  these  materials  produces  a  most  excellent  and  durable  soil, 
containing,  in  fair  proportions,  alumina,  silex,  potash,  lime, 
and  other  fertilizing  minerals.  Certain  fertilizers  have  been 
successfully  employed  in  improving  its  natural  fertility,  and 
when  it  is  partially  exhausted  by  excessive  tillage,  rest  alone 
will  restore  it. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  53 

Loudoun  Sandy  Loam. 

The  Loudoun  sandy  loam  consists  of  from  8  to  12  inches  of  a 
heavy  brown  or  gray  sandy  loam,  underlain  by  a  heavy  yellow 
or  red  loam  or  clay  loam.  Often  the  subsoil  contains  a  con- 
siderable quantity  of  coarse  sand,  making  the  texture  much 
the  same  as  that  of  the  soil.  The  sand  of  the  soil  and  sub- 
soil is  composed  of  very  coarse  rounded  and  subangular  quartz 
particles.  The  surface  material  is  not  a  light  sandy  loam,  but 
is  more  like  a  loam  containing  considerable  quantities  of  very 
coarse  quartz  fragments.  It  is  generally  quite  free  from 
stones,  but  small  areas  are  occasionally  covered  with  from  5 
to  20  per  cent  of  angular  quartz  fragments  several  inches  in 
diameter. 

The  Loudoun  sandy  loam  occurs  in  irregular  areas  of  con- 
siderable size  in  the  intermediate  valley  between  the  Blue 
Ridge,  Short  Hill,  and  Catoctin  mountains.  The  largest 
area  of  the  type  is  found  in  the  vicinity  of  Round  Hill. 

The  topography  of  this  soil  in  the  valley  varies  from  gently 
rolling  to  hilly,  the  slopes  being  long  and  gently  undulating, 
while  along  the  valley  walls  and  in  the  uplands  it  is  ridgy. 
Owing  to  the  position  which  this  type  occupies,  surface  drain- 
age is  good.  The  light  texture  of  the  soil  admits  of  the  easy 
percolation  of  water  through  it,  and,  except  where  the  subsoil 
contains  considerable  sand,  the  soil  moisture  is  well  retained. 
In  dry  weather,  if  the  ground  is  cultivated,  a  mulch  is  formed, 
which  prevents  the  evaporation  of  the  soil  moisture  and 
greatly  assists  the  crops  to  withstand  drought. 

Nearly  the  whole  of  this  type  is  in  cultivation.  Where  the 
forest  still  stands  the  growth  consists  chiefly  of  oak.  The 
soil  is  easy  to  handle,  and  can  be  worked  without  regard  to 
moisture  content.  It  is  considered  a  good  corn  land,  but  is 
too  light-textured  for  wheat,  although  a  considerable  acreage 
is  devoted  to  this  crop.  Corn  yields  at  the  rate  of  40  or  50 
bushels  per  acre,  wheat  from  12  to  15  bushels  and  occasionally 
more,  and  grass  and  clover  at  the  rate  of  1  or  2  tons  per  acre. 
The  productiveness  of  the  soil  depends  greatly  on  the  sand 
content  of  the  subsoil.     If  the  quantity  be  large,  the  soil  is 


54  HISTORY  OF 

porous  and  requires  considerable  rain  to  produce  good  yields. 
If  the  clay  content  predominates,  a  moderate  amount  of  rain 
sufl&ces  and  good  yields  are  obtained.  Apples,  pears,  and  small 
fruits  do  well  on  this  soil. 

Penn  Clay, 

The  Penn  clay  consists  of  from  6  to  12  inches  of  a  red  or 
reddish-brown  loam,  resting  upon  a  subsoil  of  heavy  red  clay. 
The  soil  and  subsoil  generally  have  the  Indian- red  color  char- 
acteristic of  the  Triassic  red  sandstone  from  which  the  soil  is 
in  part  derived.  From  1  to  10  per  cent  of  the  soil  mass  is 
usually  made  up  of  small  sandstone  fragments,  while  through- 
out the  greater  part  of  the  type  numerous  limestone  conglom- 
erate ledges,  interbedded  with  Triassic  red  sandstone,  come  to 
the  surface.  In  other  areas  of  the  type  numerous  limestone 
conglomerate  bowlders,  often  of  great  size,  cover  from  10  to 
25  per  cent  of  the  surface. 

This  latter  phase  occurs  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Potomac 
River  near  Point  of  Rocks,  Md.,  and  near  the  Potomac,  3 
miles  north  of  Leesburg,  and  in  these  places  the  heavier  phase 
of  the  type  occurs,  the  clay  often  being  very  near  the  surface. 
In  other  parts  of  the  County,  where  the  limestone  conglom- 
erate is  not  so  preponderant,  or  where  it  lies  deeper  and  is 
mostly  unexposed,  the  surface  soil  is  deeper,  often  consisting 
of  18  inches  of  loam.  The  land  is  locally  termed  "limestone 
land."  Near  Catoctin  Mountain  the  rocks  seem  to  have 
weathered  to  considerable  depth,  there  being  no  exposures  or 
outcrops.  Here  the  soil  has  been  washed  away  from  some  of 
the  more  elevated  small  areas,  and  the  heavy  red  clay  subsoil 
is  exposed. 

In  a  great  many  places  along  the  base  of  the  mountain  the 
formation  of  this  type  is  somewhat  complicated  by  the  wash 
from  the  mountain,  which  consists  principally  of  subangular 
quartz  fragments,  from  1  to  4  inches  in  diameter.  This  rock 
sometimes  forms  as  much  as  30  or  40  per  cent  of  the  soil  mass. 
This  phase  is  called  "gravelly  land,"  and  is  hard  to  cultivate 
on  account  of  its  heavy  texture  and  stony  condition,  although 
it  is  inherently  productive. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  55 

This  type  occurs  in  one  irregular-shaped  area,  about  15 
miles  long,  varying  from  less  than  1  mile  to  3  or  4  miles  in 
width,  being  cut  by  the  Potomac  River  just  east  of  Point  of 
Rocks,  Md.  It  thus  lies  in  the  central  part  of  the  County, 
in  the  Piedmont  Plateau,  extending  from  immediately  north 
of  Iveesburg,  and  skirting  the  eastern  foot  of  Catoctin 
Mountain. 

The  general  surface  drainage  is  good,  there  being  many 
small  streams  flowing  through  the  type  and  emptying  into 
the  Potomac  River.  The  stream  beds  are  but  little  lower  than 
the  surface  of  the  surrounding  land,  while  the  slopes  are  long 
and  gentle.  Excessive  erosion  scarcely  ever  occurs.  The 
heavier  phase  of  the  type  would  undoubtedly  be  improved  by 
tile  draining,  as  it  is  usually  lower  lying  than  the  lighter 
phase.  The  heavier  phase  bakes  and  cracks  in  dry  weather 
much  the  same  as  the  heavy  limestone  soils  of  the  Shenandoah 
Valley,  but  with  the  lighter  phases,  where  the  soil  covering 
is  deeper,  good  tilth  is  easily  maintained  throughout  the 
growing  season. 

Corn,  wheat,  clover,  and  grass  are  the  crops  grown,  of 
which  the  yields  are  as  follows:  Corn,  from  40  to  60  bushels 
per  acre;  wheat,  from  15  to  25  bushels  per  acre,  and  clover 
and  grass,  from  1^  to  2JE^  tons  of  hay  per  acre. 

The  Penn  clay  is  the  most  highly  prized  soil  of  the  Pied- 
mont region  of  lyoudoun  and  brings  the  highest  prices. 

Penn  Stony  Loam. 

The  Penn  stony  loam  consists  of  from  8  to  12  inches  of 
a  red  or  grayish  heavy  loam,  somewhat  silty,  underlain  by 
a  heavier  red  loam.  From  10  to  60  per  cent  of  gray  and 
brown  fragments  of  Triassic  sandstone,  ranging  from  1  to  6 
inches  in  thickness,  cover  the  surface  of  the  soil.  The  color 
is  in  general  the  dark  Indian-red  of  the  other  soils  derived 
from  Triassic  sandstone,  being  particularly  marked  in  the 
subsoil. 

This  type  occurs  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Loudoun,  on 
the  Piedmont  Plateau.     It  occupies  three  small  areas  whose 


56  HISTORY  OF 

total  extent  probably  does  not  exceed  two  and  one-half  square 
miles.  It  is  closely  associated  with  the  Penn  loam  and  grades 
gradually  into  that  type.  The  only  great  diJBference  between 
the  two  is  the  presence  of  sandstone  fragments  in  the  Penn 
stony  loam. 

The  topography  varies  from  gently  rolling  to  hilly  and 
ridgy,  with  slopes  that  are  sometimes  rather  steep.  How- 
ever, the  surface  is  not  so  broken  as  to  interfere  with  cultiva- 
tion, and  the  slopes  are  usually  gentle. 

The  type  is  well  drained,  the  slopes  allowing  a  rapid  flow 
of  water  from  the  surface,  while  the  soil  water  passes  readily 
through  the  soil  and  subsoil.  On  the  other  hand,  the  texture 
is  sufficiently  heavy  to  prevent  undue  leaching  and  drought. 

lyittle  of  the  land  is  in  cultivation,  on  account  of  its  stony 
character,  which  makes  cultivation  difficult.  Where  unim- 
proved it  is  covered  with  a  heavy  growth  of  chestnut,  oak, 
and  pine.  The  land  is  locally  called  ''chestnut  land."  In  a 
few  small  areas  the  larger  stones  have  been  removed  and  the 
land  is  cultivated,  corn  and  wheat  being  the  principal  crops. 
The  yield  of  corn  ranges  from  20  to  35  bushels  and  of  wheat 
from  8  to  1 5  bushels  per  acre.  Apples  and  small  fruits  and 
vegetables  do  well. 

Iredell  Clay  Loam. 

The  soil  of  the  Iredell  clay  loam  consists  of  from  6  to 
18  inches  of  light  loam,  usually  brown  or  gray,  although 
sometimes  of  a  yellowish  color,  with  an  average  depth  of 
about  twelve  inches.  The  subsoil  consists  of  a  heavy  yellow 
to  yellowish-brown  waxy  clay.  This  clay  is  cold  and  sour, 
almost  impervious  to  moisture  and  air,  and  protects  the 
underlying  rock  from  decay  to  a  great  extent.  Often  the 
clay  grades  into  the  rotten  rock  at  from  24  to  36  inches. 
In  4;he  poorly  drained  areas  a  few  iron  concretions  occur 
on  the  surface.  Numerous  rounded  diabase  bowlders,  vary- 
ing in  size  from  a  few  inches  to  several  feet  in  diameter, 
are  also  scattered  over  the  surface  of  the  soiL  Occasional 
slopes  of  the  type  have  had  the  soil  covering  entirely  removed 


lyOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  57 

by  erosion,  and  here,  where  the  clay  appears  on  the  surface, 
the  soil  is  very  poor.  In  other  places,  where  the  soil  cover- 
ing is  quite  deep,  as  from  12  to  18  inches,  the  type  is  fairly 
productive,  and  its  productiveness  is  generally  proportional 
to  the  depth  of  the  soil. 

The  local  name  for  the  Iredell  clay  loam  is  "wax  land," 
from  the  waxy  nature  of  the  subsoil,  or  "black-oak  land," 
from  the  timber  growth.  A  few  small,  isolated  areas  of  this 
soil  occur  in  the  intermediate  valley  of  the  Catoctin  Belt, 
and  here  the  texture  is  much  the  same  as  that  described 
above;  but  the  soil  usually  consists  of  from  6  to  10  inches 
of  a  drab  or  brown  loam,  underlain  by  a  heavy  mottled  yellow 
and  drab  silty  clay.  This  phase  has  few  stones  on  the  surface 
or  in  the  soil.  The  local  names  for  this  phase  are  '  *  cold, 
sour  land  "  and  "  white  clay." 

The  greater  part  of  the  Iredell  clay  loam  occurs  in  the 
southern  or  southeastern  corner  of  the  County  and  occupies 
one  large,  irregular-shaped  but  generally  connected  area, 
extending  from  I^eesburg,  in  a  southeasterly  and  southerly 
direction  along  Goose  Creek  to  the  southern  boundary  of  the 
County,  the  most  typical  development  of  the  soil  being  at 
Waxpool.  The  phase  already  described  occurs  in  small,  dis- 
connected areas,  usually  quite  far  apart,  the  general  relative 
direction  of  these  areas  being  northeast  and  southwest.  They 
all  lie  in  the  intermediate  valley  of  the  Catoctin  Belt,  and 
are  usually  near  the  foot  of  the  Blue  Ridge  or  Short  Hills. 
The  most  typical  development  of  this  phase  occurs  just  south- 
east of  Bluemont. 

Where  rolling  and  sloping  the  surface  drainage  is  good,  the 
water  passing  rapidly  from  the  surface  into  the  numerous 
small  streams  flowing  into  Goose  Creek,  which  is  the  main 
drainage  way  of  this  type.  In  the  low,  flat  lands  the  water 
stands  or  flows  very  slowly  from  the  surface.  Owing  to  the 
impervious  nature  of  the  clay  subsoil,  underdrainage  is  very 
slow,  and  the  land  is  often  cold  and  sour. 

Corn,  wheat,  and  grass  are  the  principal  crops  grown  on 

45—5 


58  HISTORY    OF 

this  soil  type,  the  average  yields  per  acre  being  as  follows: 
Corn,  from  20  to  40  bushels;  wheat,  from  8  to  15  bushels; 
and  grass,  from  i}4  to  2}4  tons.     Apples  do  fairly  well. 

The  greater  part  of  the  type  is  tilled,  while  the  uncultivated 
areas  are  used  for  pasturage  andjwood  lots,  the  forest  growth 
being  black  oak.  In  dryjseasons,  where  the  soil  covering  is 
not  deep,  the  land  bakes  and  cracks,  and  in  this  condition  it 
can  not  be  cultivated.  In  wet  seasons  the  soil  becomes  too 
wet  and  sticky  to  work. 

Penn  Loam. 

The  Penn  loam  consists  of  from  8  to  12  inches  of  a  dark, 
Indian-red  loam,  underlain  by  a  heavier  loam  of  the  same 
color.  This  peculiar  red^color  is  distinctive  of  the  formation 
wherever  found,  and,  consequently,  the  type  is  one  easily  rec- 
ognized. The  texture  of  the  type  is  very  uniform,  with  the 
exception  of  a  few  small  areas  where  the  subsoil  is  a  clay 
loam.  The  soil  is  locally  termed  "red-rock  land,"  on  account 
of  the  numerous  small  red  sandstone  fragments  which  occur 
in  the  soil  and  subsoil  in  quantities  varying  from  5  to  20  per 
cent  of  the  soil  mass.  The  soil  is  free  from  large  stones  or  other 
obstructions  to  cultivation. 

This  type  occurs  in  several  large,  irregular  areas  on  the 
Newark  formation  of  the  Piedmont  Plateau  in  the  eastern 
part  of  the  County.  The  areas  have  a  general  northeast  and 
southwest  trend.  A  few  small  areas  occur  in  close  proximity 
to  the  larger  ones.  One  of  the  larger  areas  is  situated  just 
south  of  Ivcesburg,  while  another  occurs  east  of  Lucketts. 

The  topography  consists  of  a  gently  rolling  to  nearly  level 
plain,  and  there  are  no  steep  slopes  or  rough  areas.  Drainage 
in  this  type  is  excellent,  the  easy  slopes  allowing  a  gradual 
flow  of  water  from  the  surface  without  undue  erosion,  except 
with  very  heavy  rains  on  the  steeper  slopes.  The  loamy  sub- 
soil allows  a  ready  but  not  too  rapid  percolation  of  surplus 
soil  moisture,  and  never  gets  soggy  or  in  a  cold,  sour  condi- 
tion. Numerous  small  streams  extend  throughout  the  area 
of  this  type,  allowing  a  rapid  removal  of  all  surplus  water 
into  the  Potomac  River,  the  chief  drainageway  of  the  County. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  59 

Along  these  streams,  which  in  all  cases  have  cut  out  beds 
some  10  to  30  feet  below  the  surrounding  plain,  the  slopes  are 
gradual. 

The  original  growth  on  the  Penn  loam  was  a  forest  of  oak, 
hickory,  and  walnut,  but  at  the  present  time  nearly  all  of  the 
type  is  cleared  and  farmed.  The  soil  is  not  naturally  very 
productive,  but  is  prized  on  account  of  its  great  susceptibility 
to  improvement,  its  quick  responsiveness  to  fertilization,  and 
its  easy  cultivation  and  management.  The  surface  is  smooth 
and  regular,  and  the  absence  of  stones,  together  with  the 
loamy  texture  of  the  soil,  makes  it  easy  to  maintain  good 
tilth.  Any  addition  of  fertilizers  or  lime  is  immediately 
effective,  and  by  judicious  management  the  type  may  be  kept 
in  a  high  state  of  productiveness.  Many  fine  farms  with 
good  buildings  are  to  be  seen  on  this  type.  The  crops  grown 
are  corn,  wheat,  grass,  clover,  apples,  and  small  fruits.  Graz- 
ing, stock  raising,  and  dairying  are  practiced  to  some  extent. 
The  land  yields  from  40  to  60  bushels  of  corn,  from  10  to  15 
or  more  bushels  of  wheat,  and  from  1  to  2  tons  of  hay  per 
acre. 

Cecil  Loam, 

The  soil  of  the  Cecil  loam  consists  of  from  8  to  12  inches 
of  a  brown  or  yellow  loam.  The  subsoil  consists  of  a  heavy 
yellow  or  red  loam,  or  occasionally  clay  loam.  The  soil  and 
subsoil  are  usually  free  from  stones,  but  occasional  areas 
have  from  5  to  30  per  cent  of  angular  quartz  or  schist  frag- 
ments on  the  surface.  Often  a  mica-schist  enters  into  the 
composition  of  the  subsoil,  giving  it  a  soft  and  greasy  feel. 

The  greater  part  of  the  intermediate  valley  or  base-level 
plain  of  the  Catoctin  Belt  consists  of  the  Cecil  loam,  and  it 
occurs  here  as  one  large,  connected  area,  inside  of  which  are 
small  areas  of  Cecil  clay,  Loudoun  sandy  loam,  and  Iredell 
clay  loam.  A  considerable  portion  of  the  Catoctin  Mountain 
also  consists  of  the  Cecil  loam.  In  extent  this  is  the  most 
important  soil  type  in  Loudoun,  covering  about  33  per  cent 
of  the  total  area. 


60  HISTORY  OF 

The  Cecil  loam,  owing  to  its  rolling  character,  is  well 
drained  throughout.  Many  small  streams  traverse  it,  afford- 
ing ample  outlets  for  surface  water.  The  gently  rolling  areas 
are  not  generally  subject  to  excessive  erosion,  but  the  steeper 
slopes  wash  badly,  deep  gullies  and  ditches  being  formed  on 
the  hillsides.  Especially  subject  to  erosion  are  the  areas  in 
which  the  subsoil  contains  a  relatively  large  proportion  of 
mica  fragments.  The  soil  and  subsoil,  though  quite  loamy, 
retain  enough  moisture  in  seasons  of  moderate  rainfall  to 
supply  all  growing  crops. 

The  Cecil  loam  is  devoted  entirely  to  general  farming.  The 
crops  grown  are  corn,  wheat,  grass,  clover,  vegetables, 
apples,  and  pears.  The  agricultural  interests  are  further 
diversified  by  the  practice  of  dairying  and  stock  raising. 
The  land  is  one  of  the  best  corn  soils  of  lyoudoun,  being 
loamy  and  easily  cultivated  throughout  the  growing  season. 
The  average  yield  per  acre  ranges  from  40  to  60  bushels. 
Wheat  does  very  well,  producing  from  12  to  20  bushels  per 
acre,  and  more  in  favorable  seasons.  Grass  and  clover  yield 
at  the  rate  of  from  1  to  2  tons  of  hay  per  acre  and  form  good 
grazing  during  a  considerable  part  of  the  year.  Apples  and 
pears  are  grown  everywhere  on  the  type,  usually  in  small 
orchards,  and  good  yields  of  these  fruits  are  obtained.  Oats 
were  at  one  time  grown,  and  can  be  produced  at  the  rate  of 
from  35  to  50  bushels  per  acre,  but  the  present  acreage  is 
small,  the  farmers  claiming  that  this  crop  rapidly  reduces  the 
productiveness  of  the  soil. 

Nearly  all  of  the  type  is  in  cultivated  crops  or  pasture. 
The  original  timber  growth  was  oak,  hickory,  and  walnut; 
but  little  of  this  stands  now,  except  on  occasional  woodlots. 
The  Cecil  loam  is  a  soil  which  with  careful  treatment  makes 
a  fine  farming  land;  but  carelessly  managed  it  very  quickly 
deteriorates. 

Cecil  Clay. 

The  soil  of  the  Cecil  clay  consists  of  a  heavy  loam,  red  or 
brown  in  color,  and  having  an  average  depth  of  8  inches. 
The  subsoil  generally  consists  of  a  red  clay,  although  it  is 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  6l 

sometimes  a  heavy  clay  loam.  The  surface  is  generally  free 
from  stones,  though  occasional  small  areas  have  a  few  quartz 
and  granite  or  schist  fragments.  In  the  Piedmont  areas  small 
rounded  diabase  fragments  occur  on  the  surface.  Occasion- 
ally on  steep  slopes  or  high  knobs  the  soil  covering  has  been 
washed  away,  leaving  the  heavy  red  clay  exposed  on  the  sur- 
face.    These  areas,  however,  are  small. 

The  type  occurs  principally  in  the  intermediate  valley  of 
the  Catoctin  Belt,  between  the  Blue  Ridge  and  the  Catoctin 
Mountain,  and  on  the  west  slopes  of  the  Catoctin  Mountain. 
In  the  valley  it  occupies  several  small,  disconnected  areas 
scattered  throughout  this  region,  while  on  the  west  slope  of 
the  mountain  it  is  found  in  one  of  two  long,  broad  areas,  ex- 
tending in  a  northeast  and  southwest  direction.  Three  small 
areas  occur  near  the  southeastern  corner  of  the  County,  and 
the  type  is  here  closely  related  to  the  Iredell  clay  loam. 

The  most  typical  areas  of  this  soil  occur  in  the  Piedmont 
Plateau  and  on  the  gentle  slopes  at  the  foot  of  the  Blue  Ridge 
in  the  vicinity  of  Bluemont. 

This  soil  type  has  excellent  surface  drainage  and  is  well 
watered  and  drained  throughout  by  small  streams.  Few  of 
the  slopes  are  so  steep  as  to  wash  badly.  The  heavy  clay 
subsoil  retains  ample  moisture  for  plant  growth  and  the 
soil  is  rarely  so  wet  as  to  necessitate  tile  draining,  although 
this  would  undoubtedly  be  very  beneficial  in  the  case  of  the 
heavier  phases. 

The  whole  of  this  soil  is  under  cultivation  and  it  is  highly 
esteemed  wherever  found,  being  naturally  a  strong  soil  and 
susceptible  of  improvement.  The  original  forest  growth  con- 
sisted of  oak,  hickory,  and  walnut.  The  land  is  easily  im- 
proved, retentive  of  moisture  and  manure,  and  with  careful 
management  makes  an  excellent  soil  for  general  farming. 
Owing  to  its  tendency  to  bake,  crops  are  liable  to  suffer  during 
drought. 

The  land  produces  wheat,  corn,  grass,  clover,  apples,  and 
pears.  It  is  a  strong  wheat  soil,  and  yields  from  15  to  25 
bushels  per  acre  and  occasionally  more.     Grass  and  clover 


62  HISTORY  OF 

hay  yield  at  the  rate  of  \%  to  2^  tons  per  acre,  while  from 
40  to  60  bushels  of  corn  per  acre  are  usually  produced  in  good 
seasons. 

All  things  considered,  the  Cecil  clay  is  best  adapted  to  the 
production  of  wheat  and  grass.  The  more  loamy  phases  are 
adapted  to  corn,  but  the  type  as  a  whole  is  a  much  "better 
wheat  land  than  corn  land.  The  soil  is  also  well  adapted  to 
apples  and  pears.  Bluegrass  grows  well  and  makes  fine  pas- 
turage, and  stock  raising  and  dairy  farming  are  other  indus- 
tries to  which  the  Cecil  clay  is  well  suited.  Care  has  to  be 
used  in  the  cultivation  of  this  soil,  for  if  worked  when  too 
wet  it  dries  in  large,  hard  clods  that  give  trouble  throughout 
the  season  and  interfere  with  cultivation  for  a  long  time  after- 
wards. 

Cecil  Silt  Loam. 

The  surface  soil  of  the  Cecil  silt  loam  consists  of  12 
inches  of  a  light  gray  or  white  silt  loam.  This  material  is 
underlain  by  a  subsoil  of  yellow  silt  loam  slightly  heavier 
than  the  soil.  The  type  is  locally  termed  '  'white  land , ' '  and 
is  closely  related  to  the  Penn  loam  and  the  Iredell  clay  loam, 
these  types  surrounding  and  grading  gradually  into  it.  In 
some  areas  the  soil  is  quite  free  from  stones,  while  in  others 
from  10  to  30  per  cent  of  the  soil  mass  is  composed  of  small 
rock  fragments. 

The  type  occupies  several  small  areas  in  the  Piedmont 
region,  in  the  southeastern  part  of  the  County.  The  largest 
of  these  areas  lies  about  2  miles  east  of  Leesburg,  and  a 
considerable  part  of  the  type  is  adjacant  to  the  Potomac  River. 
It  occupies  high,  rolling,  ridgy,  or  hilly  lands,  and  has  some 
rather  steep  slopes,  though  in  general  the  surface  is  only 
gently  sloping. 

The  drainage  is  good,  but  wherever  the  slopes  are  steep 
erosion  proceeds  rapidly,  making  gullies  and  washed-out  places 
that  hinder  or  entirely  prevent  cultivation.  The  type  is  well 
watered  by  small  streams  which  flow  the  year  round. 

Probably  one-half  of  this  type  is  cultivated.  The  remainder 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  63 

is  covered  with  a  growth  of  scrub  oak,  pine,  and  some  cedar. 
The  soil  is  thin  and  only  fairly  productive,  and  consequently 
is  not  greatly  desired  for  agriculture.  It  is  very  easy  to  work, 
but  has  to  be  cultivated  carefully  to  avoid  washing.  The 
crops  raised  are  corn,'*  wheat,  grass,  and  some  apples.  Corn 
yields  from  25  to"35^bushels,  wheat  from  12  to  15  bushels, 
and  clover  and  timothy  hay  from  1  to  2  tons  per  acre.  Small 
fruits  and  vegetables  do  well. 

Although  naturally  a  thin  soil,  the  Cecil  silt  loam  is  fairly 
well  adapted  to  thej production  of  the  crops  just  named.  Of  the 
small  fruits,  peaches,  plums,  and  berries  do  best.  On  the  whole 
the  type  is  considered  much  better  adapted  to  wheat  than  to 
corn.  It  is  limed  and  fertilized  to  a  considerable  extent,  and 
responds  well  to  such  applications. 

Cecil  Mica  Loam. 

The  Cecil  mica  loam  consists  of  12  inches  of  a  friable,  mica- 
ceous yellow  or  yellowish  red  loam,  underlain  by  a  yellow  or 
yellowish-red  loam,  whose  mica  content  increases  with  the 
depth  until  at  24  to  30  inches  the  subsoil  is  little  more  than  a 
mass  of  small  mica  flakes  which  gives  it  a  loose  texture.  Occa- 
sionally the  subsoil  is  a  clay  loam  for  several  inches  before 
grading  into  the  unweathered  mica  particles. 

On  the  surface  there  is  from  5  to  40  per  cent  of  angular 
quartz  fragments,  ranging  from  1  to  6  inches  in  diameter, 
some  being  much  larger. 

The  Cecil  mica  loam  occurs  as  one  long,  narrow  strip, 
occupying  the  lower,  gentle  eastern  slopes  of  the  Catoctin 
Mountain.  The  southern  end  of  the  stip  begins  a  short  distance 
north  of  Leesburg,  and  extends  in  a  northeasterly  direction 
to  the  Potomac  River,  opposite  Point  of  Rocks,  Md. 

The  topographic  features  of  the  Cecil  mica  loam  consist  of 
gentle  and  occasionally  steep  rolling  slopes.  The  surface  is 
well  drained  and  on  the  steeper  slopes  the  soil  washes  badly 
and  deep  gullies  are  formed.  In  a  season  of  moderate  rainfall 
the  soil  and  subsoil  retain  considerable  moisture,  but  in  dry 
weather  crops  suffer  from  drought. 


64  HISTORY  OF 

No  farms  are  found  entirely  on  the  Cecil  mica  loam,  but 
those  farms  of  the  Piedmont,  extending  up  the  mountain 
slopes,  generally  include  some  of  this  soil.  Such  areas  are  often 
farmed,  but  more  generally  used  as  woodlots.  Where  culti- 
vated the  yields  are  scant,  except  where  the  soil  is  heavily 
fertilized.  Corn  yields  from  10  to  30  bushels  per  acre  and 
sometimes  more,  and  wheat  from  6  to  12  bushels  per  acre.  The 
type  is  best  adapted  to  forestry,  chestnut  orcharding,  and 
grape  growing. 

De  Kalb  Stony  Loam, 

The  soil  of  the  De  Kalb  stony  loam  consists  of  a  yellow  or 
gray  sandy  loam  of  coarse  texture,  having  an  average  depth 
of  12  inches.  The  subsoil  consists  of  a  heavy  yellow 
sandy  loam  to  a  depth  of  24  inches  or  more,  where 
it  rests  upon  a  mass  of  sandstone  fragments.  These  sand- 
stone fragments  and  bowlders  occur  in  varying  quantities 
throughout  the  soil  and  subsoil.  Where  the  fewer  stones  are 
found  the  soil  is  not  so  sandy,  but  a  light  loam,  yellow  or  brown 
in  color,  underlain  by  a  deep  yellow  loam  subsoil. 

The  De  Kalb  stony  loam  is  a  mountain  soil,  occurring  in 
long,  parallel  bands  of  varying  width,  extending  in  a  general 
northeast  and  southwest  direction,  and  mainly  occupies  the 
crests  and  slopes  of  the  Blue  Ridge  and  Short  Hill  mountains. 
It  also  occurs  in  smaller  areas  on  the  crest  and  east  slope  of 
Catoctin  Mountain. 

On  the  Blue  Ridge  and  Short  Hills  the  De  Kalb  stony  loam 
covers  the  whole  of  the  mountains,  and  here  the  physiog- 
raphy consists  of  long,  sharp,  rock-crested  ridges,  with  steep, 
rugged  slopes  and  occasional  cliffs  and  huge  ledges.  There 
are  occasional  benches  on  the  mountain  sides,  and  here  there 
is  an  accumulation  of  two  or  three  inches  of  a  black  mold, 
resting  on  the  broken  sandstone  fragments,  and  covered  with  a 
growth  of  locust,  oak,  and  berry  vines. 

Owing  to  the  steep  and  rugged  surface  of  this  soil,  together 
with  its  stony  character,  superficial  drainage  is  rapid  and 
thorough,  the  water  rushing  in  torrents  from  the  mountain 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  65 

slopes,  while  as  a  result  of  the  loose  texture  and  the  large 
number  of  stone  fragments  in  the  soil  the  water  passes  rapidly 
through  it,  and  there  is  never  an  excess  of  moisture  in  the 
soil  or  subsoil. 

On  account  of  the  steep  and  stony  nature  of  the  De  Kalb 
stony  loam  little  of  the  type  can  possibly  be  cultivated.  The 
soil  is  naturally  a  very  thin  one,  and  is  not  capable  of  pro- 
ducing fair  yields  except  in  its  less  stony  phases. 

The  principal  growth  on  the  type  is  chestnut,  oak,  and 
some  pine.  Probably  95  per  cent  of  the  type  is  uncultivated, 
and  is  valuable  only  for  the  timber  growth  it  supports. 
Where  cultivated  the  average  yields  per  acre  are  as  follows: 
Corn,  from  10  to  20  bushels;  wheat,  from  6  to  10 
bushels.  Apples  and  especially  peaches  do  fairly  well  on  the 
mountain  phase  where  not  too  stony. 

The  greater  part  of  the  De  Kalb  stony  loam  is  not  adapted 
to  agricultural  purposes  at  all,  and  it  is  not  likely  that  the 
land  will  ever  be  valuable  except  for  forestry.  It  is  locally 
termed  "mountain  land,"  and  is  the  poorest  agricultural  soil 
of  the  County. 

Porters  Clay. 

The  Porters  clay  consists  of  from  6  to  12  inches  of  a  brown 
or  reddish-brown  loam,  underlain  by  a  heavy  red  loam  or  clay 
loam.  The  type  consists  of  fairly  rough  mountain  land,  and 
is  very  stony,  having  from  15  to  60  percent  of  small  and  large 
schist  ^fragments  on  the  surface,  some  of  which  are  several 
feet  in  diameter.  The  soil  is  light  and  easy  to  work  wherever 
it  is  not  so  stony  as  to  interfere  with  cultivation. 

This  soil  is  a  strictly  mountain  type  and  not  of  great  extent. 
It  follows  the  crest  and  part  of  the  east  slope  of  the  Blue 
Ridge  Mountains  for  several  miles,  extending  in  a  north- 
easterly direction  and  ending  at  the  areas  of  sandstone 
formation. 

The  type  is  well  drained  throughout,  while  the  texture  of 
the  subsoil  is  sufficiently  heavy  to  retain  considerable  moisture 
through  quite  extended  dry  spells.  The  steeper  slopes  are 
uncultivated,  and  hence  are  not  subject  to  erosion. 


66  HISTORY  OF 

A  considerable  proportion  of  this  soil  type  is  under  cultiva- 
tion, especially  on  the  broad  mountain  top.  Those  areas  not 
cultivated  are  covered  with  a  heavy  growth  of  oak,  hickory, 
locust,  and  walnut.  Corn  and  wheat  can  be  grown  on  the 
type  with  fair  yields,  but  little  of  the  latter  is  grown  on 
account  of  the  stony  nature  of  the  land.  Corn  yields  from 
20  to  35  bushels,  wheat  from  8  to  15  bushels,  and  grass 
and  clover  from  1  to  2  tons  per  acre.  Irish  and  sweet 
potatoes  give  good  yields,  and  fine  apples  and  peaches  are 
produced.  Peaches  are  liable  to  winterkill,  and  the  crop  is 
uncertain  for  this  reason.  This  type  is  peculiarly  adapted  to 
fruit  growing,  and  especially  to  the  production  of  apples. 

Meadow, 

The  Meadow  of  Loudoun  is  usually  a  brown  silty  or  sandy 
loam,  with  a  depth  of  several  feet.  The  type  occurs  in  nar- 
row bands  along  the  larger  streams,  forming  a  bottom  or  low 
terrace  a  few  feet  above  the  mean  water  level.  The  nature  of 
the  soil  depends  greatly  on  the  surrounding  soils,  as  it  is 
formed  from  sediment  of  the  wash  from  these  types  and  par- 
takes of  their  textural  characteristics  to  some  extent. 

The  type,  while  low  and  flat,  is  generally  well  enough 
drained  for  cultivation,  although  this  is  somewhat  hindered  by 
overflows;  consequently  the  land  is  chiefly  used  for  grazing. 
The  soil  is  alluvial  in  origin,  being  built  up  by  successive  over- 
flows of  the  streams.  Little  of  the  type  is  forested.  Where 
cultivated  it  is  generally  used  for  corn,  which  yields  from  50 
to  75  bushels  an  acre.  Little  wheat  is  grown,  although  the 
soil  is  capable  of  producing  fair  yields  of  this  crop.  It  also 
produces  from  2  to  3  tons  of  hay  per  acre,  and  affords  excel- 
lent pasturage.  The  crops  are  somewhat  uncertain,  however, 
on  account  of  overflows  which  sometimes  occur  after  the 
planting  season,  though  in  the  case  of  the  River  the  danger 
from  flood  is  usually  past  before  the  time  for  corn  planting. 
Where  the  areas  are  in  grass  the  floods  usually  do  little  dam- 
age. Productiveness  is  in  a  great  measure  maintained  by  the 
addition  of  the  sediments  left  by  the  overflow  waters. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  67 

FLORA  AND  FAUNA. 

Flora. — Records  of  the  days  of  early  settlement  point  to  a 
scarcity  and  an  inferiority  of  large  timber  in  Loudoun  (then 
Prince  William)  and  contiguous  counties.  The  responsibility 
for  this  condition  has  been  traced  to  the  hunters  who  frequented 
this  region  prior  to  its  settlement  and  wantonly  set  fire  to  the 
forests  in  order  to  destroy  underbrush,  the  better  to  secure 
their  quarries.  A  comparatively  dense  and  vigorous  new 
growth  followed  the  discontinuance  of  this  pernicious  practice. 

At  the  present  time,  after  the  encroachment  of  field  and 
pasture  for  nearly  two  centuries,  a  large  portion  of  the  county's 
area  is  still  under  forest  cover.  The  stand,  in  the  main,  is 
somewhat  above  average  size  and  quality. 

The  total  value  of  forest  products  cut  or  produced  on  farms 
in  1899  was  $51,351.  This  includes  only  the  wood,  lumber, 
railroad  ties,  etc.,  which  the  farmers  cut  in  connection  with 
their  ordinary  farming  operations.  The  reports  of  persons 
making  lumbering  or  wood  cutting  their  principal  business 
are  not  included. 

The  trees  common  to  Loudoun  are  four  varieties  of  the 
white  oak,  i.  e. ,  common,  swamp,  box,  and  chestnut-leaved, 
the  latter,  however,  appearing  only  along  the  margin  of  the 
Potomac  River;  black,  Spanish,  and  red  oak,  chestnut  oak, 
peach  or  willow  oak,  pin  oak;  and  in  the  eastern  parts  of  the 
county,  black  jack,  or  barren  oak,  and  dwarf  oak,  hickory, 
black  and  white  walnut,  white  and  yellow  poplar,  chestnut, 
locust,  ash,  sycamore,  wild  cherry,  red  flowering  maple,  gum, 
sassafras,  persimmon,  dogwood,  red  and  slippery  elm,  black 
and  white  mulberry,  aspin  (rare),  beech,  birch,  linn,  honey- 
locust,  sugar  maple,  sugar  nut,  yellow  and  white  pine,  hem- 
lock, and  red  cedar. 

Among  the  smaller  trees  and  shrubs  are  the  white  thorn, 
maple-leaved  or  Virginia  thorn  (suitable  for  hedging),  haw- 
thorn, wild  May  cherry,  or  service  berry,  water  beech,  fringe 
tree,  red  bud,  black  alder,  common  alder,  sumach,  elder, 
laurel,    witch-hazel,    hazel-nut,    papaw,    chinkapin,  burnish 


68  HISTORY  OF 

bush,  nine  bark,  button-bush,  honeysuckle,  several  varieties 
of  the  whortleberry  or  huckleberry,  and  wild  gooseberry. 

A  few  of  the  brambles  met  with  are  the  greenbrier,  high 
blackberry,  dewberry,  or  low  blackberry,  and  raspberry. 

A  list  of  the  vines  and  creepers  would  comprise  the  fox 
grape,  three  varieties;  pigeon,  or  raccoon  grape,  chicken 
grape,  a  wild  bitter  grape,  sarsaparilla,  yellow  parilla,  poison- 
vine,  or  poison-oak,  clematis,  trumpet-flower,  and  wild  potato 
vine. 

The  medicinal  herbs  found  in  lyoudoun  are  the  rattlesnake 
root,  Seneca  snakeroot  (also  called  Virginia  snakeroot) ,  many 
varieties  of  mint,  liverwort,  red-root,  May  apple,  butterfly- 
weed,  milk  weed,  thorough-stem,  trumpet- weed,  Indian- 
physic,  lobelia  inflata,  and  lobelia  cardinalis ,  golden-rod,  skunk- 
cabbage,  frost-weed,  hoar-hound,  and  catnip. 

The  injurious  plants  with  which  the  careful  farmer  must 
contend  are  the  wild  garlic,  tribby  weed,  dog  fennel,  two 
varieties  of  the  common  daisy,  oxeye  daisy,  St.  John's  wort, 
blue  thistle,  common  thistle,  pigeon- weed,  burdock,  broad  and 
narrow- leaved  dock,  poke- weed,  clot-bur,  three- thorned  bur, 
supposed  to  have  been  introduced  from  Spain  by  the  Merino 
sheep,  Jamestown  or  **jimson"  weed,  sorrel,  and,  in  favorable 
seasons,  a  heavy  growth  of  lambs  quarter  and  rag-weed. 

Of  introduced  grasses,  lyoudoun  has  red  clover,  timothy, 
herd's-grass,  orchard-grass,  and  Lucerne  to  which  last  little 
attention  is  now  given.  Native  grasses  are  the  white  clover, 
spear  grass,  blue  grass,  fox-tail  and  crab  grass,  the  two  last- 
named  being  summer  or  annual  grasses.  Several  varieties  of 
swamp  or  marsh  grass  flourish  under  certain  conditions,  but 
soon  disappear  with  proper  drainage  and  tillage. 

Although  some  of  the  wild  flowers  of  Loudoun  merit  the 
attention  of  the  florist,  as  a  whole  they  have  no  commercial 
value  or  significance  and,  for  this  reason,  an  enumeration  of 
the  many  varieties  has  not  been  thought  expedient. 

Fauna. — Wild  ducks,  geese,  and  turkeys,  pheasants  (Eng- 
lish and  Mongolian) ,  partridges  and  woodcock  are  among  the 
game  fowls  of  Loudoun,  and  eagles,  crows,  buzzards,  owls, 


lyOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  69 

and  hawks  among  the  predatory.  The  usual  list  of  song- 
birds frequent  this  region  in  great  numbers  and  receive  some 
protection  under  the  stringent  fish  and  game  laws  in  force 
here. 

Red  and  gray  foxes,  raccoons,  opossums,  woodchucks, 
squirrels,  hares  and  smaller  animals  are  quite  general. 

In  pioneer  days  the  county  abounded  in  the  larger  species 
of  game  common  to  the  forests  of  North  America.  Among 
these  were  the  beaver  and  otter,  buffalo,  deer,  wolf,  wild-cat, 
panther,  bear,  fox,  and  elk  or  wapiti  {^Cervus  canadensis)^ 
noble  herds  of  which  ranged  the  mountain  sides  and  valleys 
of  this  section. 

TRANSPORTATION   FACILITIES.* 

Good  roads,  always  of  immeasurable  importance  to  the 
farmer,  were  early  made  necessary  by  the  tremendous  crops 
of  marketable  products  harvested  from  Loudoun  lands. 
Though  this  need,  in  time,  became  imperative  the  roads  were 
never  hastily  and  imperfectly  constructed;  they  were  built 
with  an  eye  single  to  permanence  and  with  due  allowance  for 
generations  of  unintermittent  and  augmentative  traffic. 

These  roads  yielded  their  promoters  modest  dividends,  but 
with  the  completion  in  I832  of  the  Chesapeake  and  Ohio 
Canal,  bordering  the  county  just  across  the  Potomac,  trans- 
portation to  and  from  Washington  (Georgetown)  and  Alex- 
andria was  materially  cheapened  and  the  earnings  of  the 
turnpike  companies  suffered  a  corresponding  decrease,  the 
income,  in  many  cases,  being  barely  sufficient  to  defray  the 
expense  of  maintenance.  Tolls  are  now  collected  at  only  two 
points  in  the  County. 

The  turnpike  craze  spread  to  Loudoun  not  long  after  the 
War  of  Independence  and  culminated  about  forty  years  later. 

*No  apology  is  offered  for  the  omission  of  vital  statistics  that  might 
and  would  have  been  included  in  this  department  had  earnest  appeals 
addressed  to  State  officers  and  the  State  Corporation  Commission  met 
with  more  courteous  and,  I  might  add,  dutiful  consideration.  Not 
the  least  assistance  was  vouchsafed  by  any  of  them.— The  Author. 


70  HISTORY  OP 

It  wrought  a  revolution  in  public  travel,  relatively  nearly  as 
great  as  that  brought  about  by  the  railway  craze  in  more 
recent  years.  The  corporate  names  of  some  of  .the  roads 
constructed  through  Loudoun  before  its  subsidence  were,  the 
Goose  Creek  and  Little  River  Turnpike,  Loudoun  and  Berlin 
(now  Brunswick,  Md.)  Turnpike,  Ashby's  Gap  Turnpike, 
Leesburg  Turnpike,  Leesburg  and  Snicker's  Gap  Turnpike, 
Little  River  Turnpike  and  Snicker's  Gap  Turnpike.  Their 
combined  authorized  capital  stock  was  $637,325,  of  which 
amount  more  than  two-thirds  was  subscribed  by  individuals, 
the  State  assuming  the  balance. 

The  system  did  not  originate  solely  in  a  local  want  or  de- 
mand along  the  lines  contemplated.  Other  causes  were  also 
at  the  bottom  of  the  movement.  The  settlement  of  the  County 
was  necessarily  by  progressive  though,  at  times,  apparently 
simultaneous  steps.  First  came  the  settlement  and  location 
of  one  or  two  towns,  and  the  opening  of  communication 
between  them;  then  the  advent  of  the  trapper,  hunter,  and 
scout  into  the  unsettled  portion;  then  came  the  land  grants 
and  the  settlement  in  isolated  localities;  then  the  blazed  trail 
to  the  parent  towns  and  to  the  cabin  of  the  pioneer  or  the 
outposts;  then  the  drift- ways,  cart- ways,  and  the  local  roads 
winding  from  cabin  to  cabin;  then  the  town- ways  and  county 
roads,  with  here  and  there  the  * '  provincial ' '  highways. 

Today,  the  public  roads  and  turnpikes  of  Loudoun  are  un- 
questionably better  than  those  of  most  counties  and,  in 
obedience  to  a  popular  demand,  are  kept  in  a  fair  state  of 
repair.  One  or  two  of  the  main-traveled  thoroughfares 
would  compare  favorably  with  the  best  rural  roads  in  the 
country. 

Long  before  the  Civil  War,  Little  River  was  rendered 
navigable  from  its  mouth  to  Aldie  by  means  of  a  lock  and 
dam  system,  this  and  more  far-reaching  improvements  hav- 
ing been  undertaken  by  the  "Goose  Creek  and  Little  River 
Navigation  Company"  capitalized  at  $100,000.  The  dams 
were  destroyed  by  Federal  invaders  and  never  reconstructed. 

Loudoun  is  traversed  by  the  Washington  and  Ohio  Divi- 
sion of  the  Southern  Railway,   which   penetrates  the  County 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  71 

centrally  from  east  to  west  and  furnishes  an  lUtlet  for  her 
immense  shipments  of  cattle,  grain  and  misc  llaneous  prod- 
ucts. No  less  than  twelve  stopping  points  are  recognized 
within  her  limits,  at  all  but  three  of  which  commodious 
stations  have  been  erected. 

The  original  purpose  of  the  promoters  was  to  extend  this 
road  to  the  coal-fields  of  Hampshire  County,  West  Virginia 
(then  in  Virginia) .  The  name  under  which  it  was  incorpo- 
rated was  the  "Alexandria,  Loudoun  and  Hampshire  Rail- 
road." During  the  Civil  War  its  bridges  and  tracks  were 
destroyed  by  order  of  General  Lee  and  for  some  years  after- 
ward Loudoun  was  without  adequate  railwaj^  communica- 
tion with  the  outside  world. 

The  cost  of  construction  between  Alexandria  and  Lees- 
burg,  the  first  division  of  the  work,  was  $1,538,744.  The 
line,  many  years  afterward,  was  extended  to  Round  Hill  and 
still  later  to  Bluemont,  at  present  the  Westernmost  terminal. 
Stages,  affording  communication  with  Winchester  and  inter- 
mediate towns  of  the  Shenandoah  Valley,  are  operated  from 
this  point  and  between  Leesburg  and  Middleburg  and  Point 
of  Rocks.    Liveries  are  conducted  in  all  the  important  towns. 

The  northern  edge  of  the  County  is  in  easy  communication 
with  the  main  line  of  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad  and 
the  Chesapeake  and  Ohio  canal  just  across  the  Potomac. 

Large  steel  bridges,  spanning  the  Potomac  at  Harpers 
Ferry,  Brunswick  and  Point  of  Rocks,  afford  convenient 
ingress  into  West  Virginia,  Maryland  and  the  not  far-distant 
state  of  Pennsylvania. 

Further  communication  with  the  north  is  made  possible  by 
a  ferry  (White's)  in  constant  operation  between  Loudoun 
and  the  Maryland  shore. 

TOWNS  AND  VILLAGES. 

Leesburg. 
Leesburg,  a  fine  old  town,  the  county-seat  of  Loudoun,  lies 
at  the  eastern  base  of  Catoctin  Mountain,  2^  miles  from  the 
Potomac  River  at  Balls  Bluff,  and  3^  miles  west  of  Goose 


72  HISTORY  OF 

Creek.  It  is  in  the  northern  part  of  the  County,  40  miles 
northwest  of  Washington,  153  miles  in  a  like  direction  from 
Richmond,  the  State  capital,  within  a  few  miles  of  the  pic- 
turesque Blue  Ridge  Mountains  and  the  celebrated  Valley  of 
Virginia,  12  miles  from  Point  of  Rocks,  Md.,  and  about  22 
miles  from  historic  Harpers  Ferry,  W.  Va.  It  occupies  a  high 
and  healthy  plain,  the  environs  of  which  are  waving  and  well 
cultivated  and  delightfully  variegated  by  hill  and  dale. 

The  town  derives  its  name  from  the  Lees,  who  were  among 
the  early  settlers  of  the  County,  and  was  established  by  act  of 
the  General  Assembly,  in  September,  1758,  in  the  thirty-second 
year  of  the  reign  of  George  II.  Nicholas  Minor,  who  owned 
sixty  acres  of  land  about  the  court-house,  had  subdivided  this 
tract  and  some  of  the  lots  had  been  built  upon  prior  to  the  pas- 
sage of  the  act.  This  instrument  constituted  "the  Hon.  Philip 
lyudwell  Lee,  Esq.,  Thomas  Mason,  Esq.,  Francis  Lightfoot 
Lee  (father  of  'Light  Horse  Harry'  of  subsequent  Revolu- 
tionary fame),  James  Hamilton,  Nicholas  Minor,  Josias  Clap- 
ham,  ^neas  Campbell,  John  Hugh,  Francis  Hague,  and 
William  West,  gentlemen,"  trustees  for  the  newly  established 
town.  Prior  to  its  establishment  it  had  borne  the  name 
Georgetown,  bestowed  in  honor  of  the  then  reigning  English 
monarch. 

*"In  its  birth  and  infancy  the  town  was  destined  to  win  re- 
nown, for  it  was  first  founded  as  a  fort  or  outpost  of  the  then 
struggling  colony  of  Virginia,  as  its  narrow  streets  and  close, 
little  red  brick  houses  still  testify,  and  for  many  years  was  the 
most  westerly  post  of  the  colony.  At  one  time  the  entire  town 
was  enclosed  by  stockades.     ..." 

''Following  its  establishment  the  little  fort  became  the 
principal  outfitting  post  for  the  British  and  colonial  forces  in 
the  French  and  Indian  war.  Tradition  still  fondly  points 
to  the  stone  house,  famous  as  the  headquarters  of  General 
Braddock,  who,  it  is  claimed,  passed  through  the  place  on  his 
last  fatal  march  to  the  wilderness;  but  in  the  light  of 
thorough  investigation  this  claim  is  found  to  be  unsubstantiated. 
*Mrs.  A.  H.  Throckmorton  in  the  Richmond  Times. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  73 

While  a  division  of  his  army,  under  command  of  the  eccentric 
old  Sir  Peter  Halkett,  did  undoubtedly  spend  the  night  at  the 
plantation  of  Nicholas  Minor,  the  principal  founder  of  the  town, 
General  Braddock  is  found  to  have  gone  in  another  direction." 

Leesburg  is  governed  by  a  mayor  and  common  council  and 
had  at  the  time  of  the  last  government  census  (1900)  a  popu- 
lation of  1,513.  An  unusual  percentage  of  its  people  are  well 
educated,  and  all  proverbially  hospitable. 

The  houses,  many  of  which  are  of  brick  and  stone  construc- 
tion, are  built  in  a  compact  and  substantial  manner.  In  the 
town  and  its  environs  are  many  of  the  most  palatial  residences 
to  be  seen  in  Virginia.  There  are  several  wxll-kept  public 
roads  leading  from  the  town  to  the  surrounding  country  seats 
and  stock  farms,  nearly  all  of  which  are  modernized  reminders 
of  the  old  plantation  days. 

With  an  elevation  less  than  most  points  in  the  County,  Lees- 
burg, nevertheless,  shares  with  them  the  distinction  of  being 
unsurpassed  for  healthfulness  and  picturesqueness  of  sur- 
roundings. 

Crossing  at  right  angles,  its  streets  are  regular  and  spacious 
and  lighted  by  electricity.  Many  of  its  dwellings  and  busi- 
ness houses  are  also  equipped  with  electric  lighting  facilities, 
power  for  which  is  generated  at  a  plant  located  near  Belmont, 
on  Goose  Creek,  and  controlled  by  Leesburg  capitalists.  In 
almost  every  quarter  of  the  town  are  brick  and  granolithic 
sidewalks,  fringed  with  the  usual  varieties  of  shade  trees. 

Some  of  the  municipal  advantages  not  already  enumerated 
are  a  sewerage  system,  a  fire  department,  a  public  library,  police 
protection  and  a  thoroughly  modern  system  of  water-works 
of  a  capacity  sufficient  to  supply  the  entire  corporation  with 
absolutely  pure  water  from  a  noted  spring  issuing  near  the 
base  of  Catoctin  Mountain. 

Some  of  the  public  buildings  are  a  town  hall,  one  of  the 
largest  brick  edifices  in  Northern  Virginia;  a  comparatively 
new  court-house  and  a  clerk's  office,*  both  venerable  structures 

*Prior  to  1873,  the  Leesburg  Academy. 
45-6 


74  HISTORY  OF 

with  imposing  facades  lending  them  an  exquisite  air  of  Colo- 
nialism, the  two  liberally  disposed  over  a  fenced  area  with 
sloping  lawns  and  umbrageous  shade;  a  brick  jail  (County) 
containing  eight  steel  cells,  commodious  residential  quarters 
for  the  jailer  and  his  family  and  having,  as  an  humanitarian 
feature,  a  sunny  court  with  towering  walls;  a  remodelled  brick 
academy  and  a  colored  school,  both  comprising  primary,  inter- 
mediate, and  high  school  divisions,  and  provided  with  ample 
educational  facilities  and  extensive  playgrounds. 

The  town  has  7  churches  representing  all  the  leading  denom- 
inations, a  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  branch,  5  fra- 
ternal orders  and  a  weekly  newspaper.  Eight  trains  arrive  at 
and  depart  from  I^eesburg  daily. 

Among  the  local  enterprises  are  two  handsome  banking 
houses  (the  *%oudoun  National  Bank"  and  "Peoples  Na- 
tional Bank' ' ) ,  2  large  hotels  affording  accommodations  for 
130  guests,  several  boarding  houses,  stores  handling  every 
class  and  grade  of  merchandise,  an  artificial  ice  plant  with  a 
daily  capacity  of  5  tons,  a  large  race  course  on  the  outskirts 
of  the  town  where  are  held  annually  a  horse  show,  races  and 
other  like  events,  a  confectionery  and  bakery,  an  ice  cream 
factory,  a  pop  factory,  two  harness  factories,  a  lumber  and 
planing  mill,  2  private  schools,  3  cobblers'  establishments,  2 
livery  stables,  3  blacksmith  shops,  2  furniture  houses,  2  under- 
taking establishments,  2  grain  elevators,  a  lime  quarry,  3 
wheelwright  shops,  2  tinning  establishments,  a  concrete  con- 
struction plant,  monument  works,  wood  and  coal  yard,  Stand- 
ard Oil  Company's  branch  and  packing  house. 

Leesburg  probably  has  more  than  the  usual  number  of  res- 
ident physicians,  lawyers,  and  mechanics  to  be  found  in  towns 
of  a  corresponding  size. 

Round  Hill. 

Round  Hill,  a  thriving  railway  town  in  the  western  part  of 
the  County,  lies  3  miles  east  of  Bluemont,  3  miles  west  of 
Purcellville,  and  53  miles  from  the  city  of  Washington.     It 


lyOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  75 

is  the  second  largest  town  in  Loudoun,  has  an  elevation  of 
about  600  feet  above  mean  tide  and  is  in  the  midst  of  a  rich 
farming  region  abounding  with  streams  of  pure  water  from 
mountain  water-courses.  The  town's  name  is  derived  from  a 
conical  hill  projecting  from  the  base  of  the  Blue  Ridge  Moun- 
tains, 2  miles  away.  It  has  a  population  of  450,  20  of  which 
number  are  merchants  and  mechanics,  and  a  newly  established 
bank. 

Waterford. 

Waterford,  a  thriving  Quaker  settlement,  is  situated  on 
Catoctin  Creek  in  the  northern  part  of  the  County,  6  miles 
south  of  Taylorstown,  7  miles  northwest  of  Leesburg,  47  miles 
in  a  like  direction  from  Washington  and  159  miles  north  of 
Richmond.  It  was  named  after  the  town  of  Waterford,  in 
Ireland,  where  some  of  its  founders  had  formerly  resided.  The 
first  house  within  the  town  limits  was  built  by  one  Asa  Moore, 
and  remains  standing  at  the  present  day.  In  common  with 
the  other  towns  and  villages  of  the  famous  Loudoun  Valley, 
Waterford  is  noted  for  its  numerous  and  inexhaustible  wells 
of  the  purest  and  best  water,  bracing  air  and  low  mortality 
rate.  It  has  383  inhabitants,  14  of  whom  are  merchants  and 
mechanics. 

Hamilton. 

Hamilton,  one  of  the  prettiest  towns  in  the  County,  is  spread 
over  a  considerable  area  and  occupies  one  of  the  highest  points 
in  the  beautiful  Loudoun  Valley.  It  is  about  46  miles  by  rail 
from  Washington,  3  miles  from  Purcellville  and  only  a  few 
miles  from  both  the  Catoctin  and  Blue  Ridge  mountains, 
walling  the  valley  to  the  east  and  west,  and  is  the  center  of  a 
group  of  seven  towns  and  villages  within  a  radius  of  5  miles. 
It  has  364  inhabitants,  of  which  number  18  are  merchants 
and  mechanics. 

Purcellville. 

Purcellville,  in  the  western  part  of  the  County  with  an 
approximate  elevation  of  500  feet,  is  about  50  miles  from 


76  HISTORY  OF 

Washington,  3  miles  from  both  Round  Hill  and  Hamilton,  and 
2}^  miles  from  Lincoln.  It  is  delightfully  situated  in  the  center 
of  one  of  the  finest  agricultural  districts  in  the  Loudoun 
Valley  and  has  a  population  of  3OO,  1 7  merchants  and  me- 
chanics and  a  national  bank. 

Middleburg. 

Middleburg,  situated  on  Goose  Creek  in  the  southwestern 
part  of  Loudoun,  is  12  miles  from  the  summit  of  the  Blue 
Ridge  at  Ashby's  Gap,  5  miles  west  of  Aldie,  ^  of  a  mile 
from  the  Fauquier  line,  and  16  miles  by  stage  from  Leesburg, 
the  seat  of  government.  It  is  a  growing  and  prosperous  com- 
munity, elevated  and  airy  and  overlooking  a  broad  expanse  of 
rich  territory.  Fourteen  of  its  296  inhabitants  are  merchants 
and  mechanics. 

Ashburn, 

Ashburn,  a  railway  town  in  lower  Loudoun,  formerly  known 
as  Farmwell,  is  34  miles  from  Washington,  3I  miles  from 
Alexandria,  4  miles  northwest  of  Sterling,  and  6  miles  from 
Leesburg.  It  is  in  the  heart  of  one  of  the  richest  and  most 
extensive  dairying  sections  of  the  State,  and  has  become  some- 
what famous  as  a  resort  for  anglers,  the  bass  fishing  in  Goose 
Creek,  near  by,  being  eminently  satisfying  and  attracting 
many  devotees  of  the  sport  from  Washington  and  other  more 
distant  points. 

Bluemont. 

Bluemont,  formerly  known  as  Snickersville ,  is  an  attractive 
village,  snugly  and  advantageously  situated  at  the  south- 
eastern base  of  the  Blue  Ridge  Mountains,  about  3  miles  from 
Round  Hill,  54  miles  by  rail  from  Washington,  and  165  miles 
from  Richmond.  It  is  on  the  western  edge  of  the  most  densely 
populated  section  of  Loudoun,  and  boasts  modern  hotels  and 
boarding  houses,  two  liveries,  a  grain  elevator,  and  many  hand- 
some dwellings.     Two  turnpikes,  leading  from  Washington 


LOUDOUN   COUNTY,  VA.  77 

and  Alexandria  to  Winchester,  intersect  at  this  point.  Blue- 
mont  is  a  popular  summer  resort,  and  lies  within  a  very  short 
distance  of  both  the  "Bears'  Den"  and  "Raven  Rocks,"  jut- 
ting points  on  the  western  slope  of  the  Blue  Ridge,  from  which 
magnificent  views  may  be  had  of  the  Shenandoah  valley  and 
river  and  the  Alleghany  and  North  mountains.  The  town 
has  a  population  of  200,  14  of  which  number  are  merchants 
and  mechanics. 

Smaller  Towns, 

Other  towns,  post  villages  and  settlements  in  the  County 
are:  Airmont,  2}^  miles  from  Bluemont,  population  25;  Aldie^ 
on  lyittle  River,  5  miles  from  both  Middleburg  and  Oatlands 
and  12  miles  from  Leesburg,  the  County  seat,  population  155, 
7  merchants  and  mechanics;  Arcola,\6  miles  from  Sterling  and 
12  miles  from  lycesburg,  population  100,  4  merchants  and 
mechanics;  Belmont  Park,  a  small  railway  station  on  the  east 
bank  of  Goose  Creek  about  4  miles  east  of  Leesburg,  formerly 
a  picturesque  resort  and  popular  excursion  point  managed  by 
the  old  Richmond  and  Danville  Railroad  Company,  attracting, 
during  the  few  years  of  its  operation,  many  thousands  of 
visitors;  Bloom  field,  7  miles  from  Round  Hill,  population  50; 
Britain,  8  miles  from  Purcellville,  population  15;  Clarkes 
Gap,  one  of  the  highest  and  healthiest  points  in  the  County 
and  an  important  shipping  point,  draining  a  large  extent  of 
fertile  country,  4  miles  west  of  Leesburg,  population  25; 
Conklin,  10  miles  from  Sterling,  population  10;  Daysville,  2 
miles  from  Sterling,  population  20;  Elvan,  1  mile  from  Lov- 
ettsville,  population  18;  Evergreen  Mills,  7  miles  from  Lees- 
burg, population  10;  Georges  Mill,  in  the  extreme  northwest- 
ern part  of  the  County;  Hillsboro,  5  miles  by  stage  from  Pur- 
cellville, population  I3I.  9  merchants  and  mechanics;  Hughes- 
ville,  7  miles  from  Leesburg,  population  12;  Irene,  on  the 
Southern  Railway  one  mile  from  Hamilton  and  the  railroad 
station  for  that  town,  population  20;  Leithton,  8  miles  from 
Purcellville  and  Round  Hill,  population  25;  Lenah,  "^  miles 


7S  HISTORY  OF 

west  of  Areola,  population  25;  Levy,  on  Bull  Run,  3  miles 
south  of  Aldie;  Lincoln,  ly^  miles  southeast  of  Purcellville,  in 
the  heart  of  the  "Quaker  Settlement,"  population  200,  3  mer- 
chants and  mechanics;  Lovettsville,  2^  or  3  miles  south  of 
Brunswick,  Md.,  and  7  miles  from  both  Waterford  and  Har- 
pers Ferry,  W.  Va.,  in  an  industrious  and  progressive  German 
neighborhood,  population  97,  16  merchants  and  mechanics; 
Luckets,  5  miles  from  Point  of  Rocks,  Maryland,  and  7  miles 
from  lycesburg,  population  50,  8  merchants  and  mechanics; 
Lunette,  4  miles  south  of  Areola,  population  10;  Mahala,  2 
miles  from  Ashburn,  population  15;  Mechanicsville\  Mountain 
Gap,  4%  miles  by  stage  from  Leesburg,  population  25;  Mount 
Gilead,  a  centrally  and  charmingly  situated  village  on  Catoc- 
tin  Mountain  about  8  miles  respectively  from  the  towns  of 
lycesburg,  Middleburg  and  Aldie,  population  50;  Mountville^ 
a  small  settlement  in  a  neighborhood  abounding  with  best 
quality  lime  and  other  minerals,  2^  miles  southeast  of  Philo- 
mont  and  about  1  >^  miles  from  both  the  waters  of  Goose 
Creek  and  Beaver  Dam,  population  25;  Morrisonville ,  6  miles 
by  stage  from  Brunswick,  Maryland,  and  4  miles  from  Lov- 
ettsville,  population  20;  Neersville,  5  miles  by  stage  from  Har- 
pers Ferry,  W.  Va.,  population  25;  North  Fork,  6  miles  from 
Purcellville,  population  26;  Oatlands,  bordering  on  Catoctin 
Mountain  7  miles  southwest  of  Leesburg  and  5  miles  north  of 
Aldie,  population  20;  PcBonian  Springs,  1  mile  northwest  of 
Clarke's  Gap,  population  112,  6  merchants  and  mechanics; 
Paxson,  an  exceptionally  healthy  community  2  miles  east  of 
Bluemont,  population  1 5 ;  Philomont,  a  Quaker  settlement  lying 

3  miles  southeast  of  Silcott  Springs  in  a  fertile  and  wealthy 
wheat-growing  neighborhood,  population  l6l;  Royville,  2 
miles  north  of  Areola;  Ryan,  2  miles  south  of  Ashburn,  popu- 
lation 50;  Silcott  Springs,  a  one-time  noted  resort  3>^  miles 
southwest   of   Purcellville,  population  25;  Sycoline,  between 

4  and  5  miles  south  of  Leesburg;  Stumptown,  2  miles  from 
Luckets,  population  20;  Taylorstown,  3  miles  southwest  of 
Point  of  Rocks,  Md.,  population  50;  Trapp,  5  miles  from  Blue- 
mont, population  36;   Unison,  6  miles  from  Bluemont  and  9 


lyOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA. 


79 


miles  from  Purcellville,  population  100,  3  merchants  and  me- 
chanics; Watson,  9  miles  from  Leesburg,  population  10; 
Waxpool,  2>^  miles  north  of  Royville  and  8  miles  from  Lees- 
burg,  population  25;  Welbourne,  about  5  miles  northeast  of 
Upperville,  in  Fauquier  county;  Wheatland,  5  miles  from  both 
Hamilton  and  Purcellville,  population  25;  Willard,  5  miles 
southwest  of  Herndon,  in  Fairfax  county,  and  Woodburn,  3 
miles  from  lycesburg,  population  15- 


i^tattstiraL 


AREA  AND  FARMING  TABULATIONS. 

The  area  of  Loudoun  County  is  variously  reckoned  at  46O, 
468,  495,  504,  510,  519,  520,  and  525  square  miles.  The 
approximate  accuracy  of  any  single  estimate  in  this  confused 
assortment  can  not  easily  be  determined,  none,  so  far  as  is 
known,  having  been  officially  confirmed.  Yardley  Taylor, 
who,  in  1853,  made  a  most  careful  survey  of  the  County,  fixed 
its  area  at  525  square  miles.  By  far  the  most  trustworthy 
authority  in  this  and  certain  other  connections,  his  findings 
have  been  adopted  with  little  uncertainty  or  hesitation. 

Of  this  number,  207  square  miles  lie  east  of  Catoctin 
Mountain  and  are  of  the  upper  secondary  formation,  while 
the  remaining  3I8  square  miles  to  the  westward  are  of  primi- 
tive formation. 

The  longest  line  across  the  County  is  35  miles,  and  extends 
from  the  lower  end  of  Lowe's  Island  at  the  old  mouth  of 
Sugarland  Run,  to  the  summit  of  the  Blue  Ridge  at  Ashby's 
Gap;  the  second  longest,  34  miles,  extends  from  the  corner  of 
Jefferson  County,  West  Virginia,  at  the  margin  of  the  Potomac 
River  below  Harpers  Ferry,  to  the  corner  of  Fairfax  County 
on  Bull  Run,  within  half  a  mile  of  Sudley  Springs  in  Prince 
William  County. 

(81) 


82 


HISTORY  OF 


Within  the  limits  of  lyoudoun  are  included  313,902*  acres 
of  the  finest  farm  land  to  be  found  in  any  county  of  the  State. 
The  farms  number  1,948,  the  average  size  being  162  acres. 
They  are  smallest  in  the  northwestern  portion  of  the  county 
and  of  moderate  size  in  the  central  portions,  the  lar-gest 
occurring  in  the  southern  and  eastern  portions.  In  1900, 
1,754,  or  90  per  cent,  were  operated  by  white  farmers,  and 
194,  or  10  per  cent,  operated  by  colored  farmers. 


TabIvE  l.—Summary  by  Decades  of  the  Improved  and  Unimproved  Land 
in  Farms,  with  per  cent  of  Increase  and  Decrease. 


Acres  of  Land  in  Farms. 

Per  cent  of  Increase. 

Census 
Year. 

Total. 

Im- 
proved. 

Unim- 
proved. 

Total 
Ivand. 

Im- 
proved 
I/and. 

Unim- 
proved 
Land. 

1900 

313,902 
294,896 
298,869 
276,291 
296,142 
294,675 

251,874 
235,703 
232,391 
201,888 
220,266 
208,454 

62,028 
59,193 
66,478 
74,403 
75,876 
86,221 

6.4 
*1.3 

8.2 

%.7 

.5 

6.9 

1.4 

15.1 

*8.3 

5.7 

4.8 

1890 

*11. 

1880 

*10.7 

1870 

*1.9 

i860 

*1.2 

1850 

^Decrease. 


Th  :i  most  striking  fact  to  be  noted  concerning  the  reported 
farm  areas  is  the  comparatively  great  decrease  in  the  decade 
i860  to  1870.  This  was,  of  course,  one  of  the  disastrous 
effects  of  the  Civil  War,  from  which  the  South,  in  general, 
after  more  than  forty-five  years,  has  not  yet  fully  recovered, 
as  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  in  some  of  the  South  Atlantic 
states  the  reported  acreage  of  farm  land  in  1900  was  less  than 
it  was  in  i860. 

A  continuous  increase  is  shown  in  the  area  of  improved 
farm  land  except  in  the  decade  1860-1870.  The  decrease  in 
the   amount   under  cultivation,    reported   in  the   census   of 


*It  will  be  understood  that  the  total  land  in  farms  by  no  means  equals 
the  total  area  of  the  County. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  83 

1870,  was  due  to  conditions  growing  out  of  the  change  in 
the  system  of  labor  which  prevented  a  complete  rehabilitation 
of  agricultural  industry. 

Only  three  other  of  the  100  Virginia  counties  reported 
larger  improved  areas  in  1900,  viz:  Fauquier,  291.734  acres; 
Pittsylvania,  280,456  and  Augusta,  276,459. 

Tabi^e  II. — Number  of  Farms  by  Decades:  Summary^  1850  to  igoo. 

1900 1,948      1870 1,238 

1890 1,818       1860 1,207 

1880 I,i41       1850 1,256 

Comparison  of  the  number  of  farms  reported  in  185O  with 
the  number  at  the  last  census  shows  an  addition  in  fifty  years 
of  692  farms. 

The  great  increase  between  187O  and  I88O  is  seen  at  a 
glance.  During  this  period  the  large  plantations  were  steadily 
undergoing  partition,  in  consequence  of  the  social  and  indus- 
trial changes  in  progress  after  the  Civil  War. 

Tabi,e  III. — Farms  Classified  by  Area — igoo. 

UnderSacres 22  100  and  under  175  acres 396 

3  and  under  10  acres 155  175  and  under  260  acres 324 

10  and  under  20  acres 171  260  and  under  500  acres 274 

20  and  under  50  acres 246  500  and  under  1,000  acres 88 

SO  and  under  100  acres 264  1,000  acres  and  over 8 

TabI/E  IV. — Number  of  Farms  of  Specified  Tenures^  June  /,  igoo. 

Owners 1,116      Managers 48 

Partowners 173       Cash  tenants 232 

Owners  and  tenants 18      Share  tenants 361 


Total , 1,948 


POPULATION. 

The  persistent  high  price  of  Loudoun  lands  has  discour- 
aged increase  of  population  by  immigration.  Indeed,  in  more 
than  eighty-five  years,  except  for  the  slight  fluctuations  of 


84  HISTORY  OF 

certain  decades,  there  has  been  no  increase  through  any 
medium. 

The  last  census  (1900)  fixed  Loudoun's  population  at 
21,948,  of  which  number  16,079  were  whites,  5,869  negroes, 
and  the  remaining  101  foreign  born.  This  aggregate  is  even 
less  than  that  shown  by  the  census  of  l820,  which  gave  the 
county  a  population  of  22,702,  or  754  more  than  in  1900. 

The  succeeding  schedules,  giving  complete  statistics  of  popu- 
lation for  Loudoun  County  by  the  latest  and  highest  author- 
ity, were  taken  from  United  States  Census  reports,  collected 
in  1900  and  published  in  1902. 

Population,  Dwellings,  and  Families: 

jgoo.  Private  Families. 

Population 21,948  Number 4,195 

Dwellings 4,157  Population 21,690 

Families 4,231  Average  size 5.2 

Private  Families  Occupying  Owned  and  Hired  and  Free  and  Encum- 
bered Homes,  jgoo. 

Total  private  families 4,195 

Farm  Homes  Owned.  Other  Homes  Owned. 

Free 959          Free 622 

Encumbered 257           Encumbered 147 

Unknown 120          Unknown 81 

Hired 648       Hired 1,169 

Unknown 7      Unknown 185 


Total 1,991  Total 2,204 


Native  and  Foreign  Born  and  White  and  Colored  Population,  Classified 

by  Sex,  igoo. 

Native  born.  Native  White — Foreign  Parents. 

Male 10,634       Male 114 

Female 11,213      Female 121 

Foreign  born.  Foreign  White. 

Male 59      Male 58 

Female 42      Female 42 

Native  White— Native  Parents.  Total  Colored. 

Male 7,583       Male  2,938 

Female 8.161      Female 2,931 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY.  VA. 


85 


In  i860,  one  year  before  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War,  the 
County  held  within  its  boundaries  21,774  souls:  15,021  white, 
5,501  slave,  and  1,252  free  colored.  In  number  of  slaves  at 
this  period  Loudoun  ranked  thirty-sixth  in  the  list  of  Virginia 
counties  which  then  also  included  the  counties  now  in  West 
Virginia.  This  number  was  distributed  amongst  670  slave- 
holders in  the  following  proportions: 


1  slave 124 

2  slaves 84 

3  slaves 61 

4  slaves 83 

5  slaves 46 

6  slaves 39 

7  slaves 35 

8  slaves 27 


9  slaves 22 

10  and  under  15  slaves 80 

15  and  under  20  slaves 36 

20  and  under  30  slaves 23 

30  and  under  40  slaves 4 

40  and  under  50  slaves 4 

50  and  under  70  slaves 1 

100  and  under  200  slaves 1 


The  following  table  gives  the  population  of  Loudoun 
County  decennially,  from  and  including  the  first  ofl&cial  census 
of  1790: 


1900 21,948 

1890 23,274 

1880 23,634 

1870 20,929 

1860 21,774 

1850 22,079 


1840 20,431 

1830 21,939 

1820 22,702 

1810 21,338 

1800 20,523 

1790 18,952 


The  reports  of  population  by  magisterial  districts  given 
below,  with  a  single  exception,  show  an  appreciable  decrease 
between  the  years  I89O  and  1900: 


Broad  Run  district.. 

Jefferson  district 

Leesburg  district.... 
Ivovettsville  district 

Mercer  district 

Mt.  Gilead  district- 


1890. 


3,463 
3,307 
4.246 
3,210 
4,570 
4,478 


S6 


HISTORY  OF 


The  following  incorporated  towns  for  the  same  period  are 
charged  with  a  corresponding  decrease  in  the  number  of  their 
inhabitants: 


Hamilton  ... 
Hillsboro.... 
Leesburg.... 
Ivovettsville 
Middleburg 
Waterford... 


407 

156 

1,650 


These  circumstances  of  fluctuation  and  actual  decrease 
might  appear  singular  if  it  could  not  be  shown  that  practi- 
cally the  same  conditions  obtain  elsewhere  in  the  State  and 
Union,  or  wherever  agriculture  is  the  dominant  industry. 
Especially  is  this  true  of  the  counties  of  Clarke,  Fauquier, 
Prince  William,  and  Fairfax,  in  Virginia,  and  Jefferson,  in 
West  Virginia.  All  these  farming  communities  adjoin  Lou- 
doun and  exhibit  what  might  be  called  corresponding  fluctu- 
ations of  population  between  the  above-named  periods. 

A  decrease  then  in  the  population  of  any  of  these  districts 
is  obviously  due,  in  a  large  measure,  to  the  partial  or  total 
failure  of  the  crops  which  causes  the  migration  of  a  portion 
of  the  population  to  large  cities  or  other  parts  of  the  country. 
If  the  failure  occurs  immediately  preceding  a  census,  the 
decrease  shown  will,  of  course,  be  large. 

As  another  contributing  cause,  it  can  be  positively  stated 
that  the  disfavor  in  which  agriculture  is  held  by  the  young 
men  of  Loudoun,  who  seek  less  arduous  and  more  lucrative 
employment  in  the  great  cities  of  the  Bast,  is,  in  part,  re- 
sponsible, if  not  for  the  depletion,  certainly  for  the  stagnation 
of  the  county's  population. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  S? 

The  white  population  of  Loudoun  County  in  1880,  I89O,  and 
1900  was  as  follows: 

Census.  Population. 

1880 16,391 

1890 16,696— 305  increase. 

1900 16,079—617  decrease. 

The  negro  population  of  Loudoun  County  for  the  same 
periods  was: 

Census.  Population. 

1880 7,243 

1890 6,578—665  decrease. 

1900 5,869— 709  decrease. 

The  figures  show  that  the  negro  population  has  steadily 
decreased,  while  the  white  population  increased  from  1880  to 
1890,  and  decreased  from  I89O  to  1900.  The  proportion  of 
decrease  for  the  negroes  was  much  greater  than  for  the  whites. 
As  the  occupations  of  the  negroes  are  almost  entirely  farming 
and  domestic  services,  crop  failures  necessarily  cause  migra- 
tion to  other  localities,  and  as  Washington  and  Baltimore  are 
not  far  distant  and  offer  higher  wages  and  sometimes  more 
attractive  occupations,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  decrease 
is  principally  due  to  the  migration  to  those  cities. 


INDUSTRIES. 

Agriculture,  in  many  of  its  important  branches,  is  by  far 
Loudoun's  leading  industry,  and  is  being  annually  benefited 
by  the  application  of  new  methods  in  cultivation  and  harvest- 
ing. The  farmers  are  thrifty  and  happy  and  many  of  them 
prosperous. 

During  the  Civil  War  agriculture  received  a  serious  set- 
back, as  the  County  was  devastated  by  the  contending  armies, 
but  by  hard  work  and  intelligent  management  of  the  people 
the  section  has  again  been  put  upon  a  prosperous  footing. 

The  agricultural  methods  in  use  throughout  the  County 
are  very  uniform,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  there  are  a 
comparatively  large  number  of  soil  types  in  the  area. 


SS  HISTORY  OF 

A  system  of  general  farming,  with  few  variations,  is  prac- 
ticed, although  some  of  the  soils  are  much  better  adapted  to 
the  purpose  than  are  other  soils  of  the  area.  The  system  of 
rotation  practiced  consists  of  drilling  in  wheat  and  timothy 
seed  together  on  the  corn  stubble  in  the  fall,  and  sowing 
clover  in  the  following  spring.  The  wheat  is  harvested  in  the 
early  summer,  leaving  the  timothy  and  clover,  which,  after 
obtaining  a  good  growth,  is  grazed  or  cut  the  next  year  for 
hay.  This  land  is  then  plowed,  and  the  following  spring  corn 
is  planted,  to  be  followed  by  wheat  again  the  next  fall,  thus 
completing  the  rotation. 

Loudoun's  gently  sweeping  hills  and  broad  valleys  support 
great  herds  of  cattle  and  flocks  of  sheep,  and  yield  immense 
crops  of  corn,  wheat,  oats,  and  other  cereals.  More  corn  is 
produced  and  probably  more  live  stock  marketed  by  Loudoun 
than  by  any  other  of  the  100  counties  of  Virginia. 

The  wheat  is  either  sold  for  shipment  or  ground  into  flour 
by  the  many  mills  of  the  County,  which  mainly  supply  the 
home  demand.  The  surplus  is  shipped  chiefly  to  Washington 
and  Baltimore.  The  major  portion  of  the  corn  is  used  locally 
for  feeding  beef  cattle,  dairy  stock,  and  work  animals.  Hay 
is  shipped  in  large  quantities  and  the  rye,  oats,  and  buck- 
wheat are  mostly  consumed  at  home.  Considerable  pork  is 
fattened  in  the  County  and  many  hundred  head  of  cattle  are 
annually  grazed  to  supply  the  Washington  and  Baltimore 
markets. 

A  Government  statistician  was  responsible  for  the  follow- 
ing statement,  based,  no  doubt,  on  the  creditable  showing 
made  by  Loudoun  in  the  census  of  1880:  "Taken  as  a  whole, 
probably  the  best  farming  in  the  State  is  now  done  in  this 
(Loudoun)  County."  Of  Virginia  counties,  it  stood,  at  that 
time,  first  in  the  production  of  corn,  butter,  eggs,  and  wool, 
and  in  numbers  of  milch  cows  and  sheep,  and  second  only  to 
Fauquier  in  the  number  of  its  stock  cattle. 

The  breeding  of  superior  stock  and  horses  is  an  important 
branch  of  the  County's  agricultural  activities.  A  contributor 
to  Country  Life  in  America^  in  an  article  entitled  "Country 


IvOUDOUN   COUNTY,  VA.  89 

Life  in  Ivoudoun  County,"  says  of  it:  * 'And  the  raising  of 
animals  is  here  not  the  fad  of  men  of  wealth  who  would  play 
at  country  life.  It  is  a  serious  business,  productive  of  actual 
profit  and  a  deep-seated  satisfaction  as  continuous  and  well 
grounded  as  I  have  ever  seen  taken  by  men  in  their  vocation." 

The  wealthier  class  of  citizens  of  course  specialize,  each 
according  to  his  personal  choice.  One,  with  1,500  acres,  all 
told,  does  a  large  dairying  business  and  raises  registered  Dor- 
set horn  sheep,  large  white  Yorkshire  swine,  registered  Guern- 
sey cattle,  and  Percheron  horses.  Another,  with  a  like  acre- 
age, specializes  in  hackneys.  A  third,  on  his  3OO  or  more 
acres,  raises  thoroughbreds  and  Irish  hunters.  A  fourth, 
with  1,000  acres,  fattens  cattle  for  market  and  breeds  Perche- 
ron horses,  thoroughbreds,  hackneys,  and  cattle.  A  fifth, 
owning  several  thousand  acres,  fattens  cattle  for  export.  A 
half  dozen  others,  on  farms  ranging  from  200  to  1,000  acres, 
raise  thoroughbreds  or  draft  animals.  These  are  the  special- 
ties; on  all  the  farms  mentioned  the  owners  have  their  sec- 
ondary interests. 

Some  of  the  farmers  whose  capital  will  not  permit  the  pur- 
chasing of  high-priced  breeding  stock,  have  long  been 
engaged  in  the  business  of  finishing  cattle  for  the  market,  ani- 
mals being  shipped  from  Tennessee,  West  Virginia,  and  else- 
where to  be  fattened  on  the  wonderful  grasses  of  Loudoun 
County.  These  steers  are  pastured  from  several  months  to 
two  years,  or  according  to  their  condition  and  the  rapidity 
with  which  they  fatten. 

Sheep  are  to  be  found  on  most  every  large  farm  and  are 
kept  for  both  wool  and  mutton.  Buyers  visit  these  farms 
early  in  the  winter  and  contract  to  take  the  lambs  at  a  cer- 
tain time  in  the  spring,  paying  a  price  based  on  their  live 
weight.  When  far  enough  advanced  they  are  collected  and 
shipped  to  eastern  markets. 

The  rapid  growth  of  near-by  cities  and  the  development  of 

transportation  facilities  have  exerted  a  great  influence  in  the 

progress  of  the  dairy  industry  in  Loudoun  County,  increasing 

the  demand  for  dairy  produce,  making  possible  the  delivery 

45—7 


90  HISTORY  OF 

of  such  produce  in  said  cities  at  a  profit  to  the  farmer,  and 
thereby  inducing  many  to  adopt  dairy  farming  as  a  vSpecialty 
instead  of  following  it  as  incidental  to  general  agriculture. 

The  dairy  cows  in  Loudoun,  June  1,  1900,  numbered  8,563, 
of  which  7,882,  or  92  per  cent  were  on  farms,  and  681, -or  8 
per  cent,  were  in  barns  and  enclosures  elsewhere. 

If  the  number  of  dairy  cows,  June  1,  I9OO,  be  taken  as  a 
basis,  the  five  most  important  Virginia  counties  arranged  in 
order  of  rank  are  as  follows:  Loudoun,  Z,  ^6'^;  Augusta,  7,898; 
Rockingham,  7,312;  Bedford,  6,951;  and  Washington,  6,792. 

If  prime  consideration  be  given  to  the  gallons  of  milk  pro- 
duced on  farms  only  in  1899,  the  counties  rank  in  the  follow- 
ing order:  Loudoun,  3,736,382;  Fairfax,  3,310,990;  Bedford, 
3,244,800;    Rockingham,  3,141,906;  and  Augusta,  2,993,928. 

If  greatest  weight  be  given  to  the  farm  value  of  dairy 
produce,  the  order  is  as  follows:  Fairfax,  $301,007;  Henrico, 
$247,428;  Loudoun,  $242,221;  Pittsylvania,  $200,174,  and 
Bedford,  $194,560. 

From  every  point  of  view  but  the  last,  Loudoun  ranked  as 
the  leading  dairy  county  of  Virginia.  The  relative  rank  of 
other  near  competitors  varied  according  to  the  basis  of  arrange- 
ment. The  value  of  dairy  produce  is  materially  influenced 
by  nearness  to  markets  and  also  by  the  average  production 
per  farm,  and  these  factors  assisted  in  modifying  the  rank  of 
Loudoun  with  reference  to  farm  values  of  dairy  produce. 

The  good  prices  obtained  for  apples  during  recent  years  have 
led  some  to  plant  this  fruit  on  a  larger  scale  than  heretofore,  and 
the  result  is  so  far  quite  gratifying.  Apples  do  well  on  most 
of  the  soils  of  Loudoun.  The  best  are  sold  to  buyers  who 
ship  to  large  markets.  The  poorer  qualities  are  kept  for  home 
consumption,  used  for  cider  and  fed  to  hogs.  Pears  are  grown 
in  small  quantities  throughout  the  County.  Peaches  do  well 
on  most  of  the  soils,  but  yield  irregularly  on  account  of  frosts. 
All  indigenous  vegetables  succeed  well,  but  are  mostly  grown 
for  home  consumption,  market  gardens  being  conspicuously 
scarce. 

Hosts  of  summer  boarders  give  to  Loudoun  a  large  tran- 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  91 

sient  population  requiring  for  its  accommodation  numerous 
hotels  and  countless  boarding  houses.  This  trade  brings  con- 
siderable money  into  the  County  and  is  a  factor  in  its  pros- 
perity not  to  be  ignored. 

Scattered  over  Loudoun  may  be  found  great  numbers  of 
small  industries,  many  of  them  employing  steam,  water,  or 
motor  power.  These  comprise  grist  mills,  grain  elevators, 
quarries,  canneries,  packing  houses,  saw  mills,  an  artificial  ice 
plant,  and  miscellaneous  enterprises.  Though  comparatively 
insignificant  taken  singly,  viewed  collectively  they  show  an 
aggregate  of  energy  and  thrift  wholly  commendable. 

Several  of  I^oudoun's  more  important  enterprises  were 
launched  subsequent  to  the  last  general  census  and  this  cir- 
cumstance renders  its  reports  of  manufactures,  at  no  time  com- 
plete or  entirely  reliable,  of  uncertain  value  as  a  symposium 
of  the  County's  manufacturing  interests  at  the  present  time. 
However,  they  are  the  latest  reports  obtainable  and  constitute 
the  only  oflScial  statistical  exhibit  of  this  subordinate  source 
of  wealth.  They  afford  at  least  a  partial  insight  into  the 
present  status  of  the  manufacturing  interests  of  Loudoun  and, 
to  this  end,  are  reprinted  below: 

Number  of  establishments 164 

Number  of  proprietors  and  firm  members 197 

Capital:  Expenses: 

Land  |25,957  Fuel  and  rent  of  power 

Buildings 79,350  and  heat $8,811 

Machinery,  etc 104,402        Miscellaneous 12,935 

Cash  and  sundries 141,548  Cost  of  materials  used...     424,538 


Total $351,257  Total $446,284 

Value  of  products $638,136 

FARM  VALUES. 

The  tables  appearing  under  this  and  the  two  succeeding 
kindred  headings  were  constructed  from  the  latest  general 
census  reports,  and  are  a  most  complete  and  trustworthy 
statistical  exhibit  of  the  agricultural  resources  and  products 
of  Loudoun  County. 


92 


HISTORY  OF 


Table  I. —  Value  of  all  farm  property,  including  implements  and  ma- 
chinery and  live  stock,  with  increase  and  decrease,  and  per  cent  of 
increase  and  decrease,  by  decades:    Summary  1830  to  igoo. 


Census  year. 


1900... 

1890... 

1880... 

I870t. 

1860. 

1850... 


Value  of  all  farm 
property. 


$11,056,109  00 
10,084,650  00 
10,814,381  00 

12,252,017  00 

11,928,830  00 
9,482,757  00 


Increase  in 
decade. 


$971,459  00 

J729,731  00 

$1,437,636  00 

323,187  00 

2,446,073  00 


Per  cent 

of 
increase. 


9.6 

t6.7 

$11.7 

2.7 

25.7 


Average 

value  per 

farm. 


$5,675  62 
5,547  11 
5,874  19 
9,896  62 
9,883  04 
7,549  97 


fValues  in  gold.    JDecrease. 

An  especially  great  increase  in  the  total  value  of  farm  prop- 
erty will  be  noted  in  the  decade  from  I85O  to  i860.  Then 
followed  the  Civil  War  with  its  great  destruction  of  farm 
property,  and  from  this  disaster  the  County  did  not  fully 
recover  before  I89O. 

The  average  value  per  acre  of  all  farm  property  in  I,ou- 
doun  increased  from  $32.18  in  I85O  to  $35-22  in  I89O. 

TabIvE  II. —  Value  of  farms  with  improvements,  including  buildings, 
with  increase  and  per  cent  of  increase,  by  decades:  Summary  1850  to 
1900. 


Census 
year. 

Value  of 
farms. 

Increase  by 
decade. 

Per  cent 

of 
increase. 

Average 

value 
per  farm. 

Average 

value 
per  acre. 

1900 

$9,138,560  00 

8,619,730  00 
9,531,254  00 

10,877,006  00 

10,508,211  00 

8,349,371  00 

$518,830  00 

$911,524  00 

$1,345,752  00 

368,795  00 

2,158,840  00 

6.0 
$9.6 

$12.4 

3.5 

25.9 

$4,691   25 
4,741   33 
5,177  22 
8,785  95 
8,706  06 
6,647  59 

$29  11 
29  23 
31  89 
39  37 
35  48 
28  3"? 

1890 

1880 

I870t 

i860 

1850 

fValues  in  gold.    {Decrease. 


In  1900  there  were  only  two  counties  of  Virginia  with 
higher  farm  values  than  L,oudoun.  They  were  Rockingham, 
with  $11,984,440,  and  Augusta,  with  $11,464,120. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  93 

TabIvE  III. —  Value  of  land  and  buildings,  with  the  per  cent  of  the  total 
represented  by  the  value  of  buildings,  fune  /,  igoo. 

Land  and  improvements  (except  buildings) $6,649,690  00 

Buildings 2,488,870  00 

Total $9,138,560  00 

Per  cent  in  buildings 37.4 


TABI.E  IV.— Number  of  farms  and  number  and  per  cent  of  those  with 
buildings^  fune  i,  igoo,  with  average  values  of  land  and  buildings. 

Number  of  farms : 

Total 1,948 

With  buildings 1,933 

Per  cent  with  buildings 99.2 

Average  value  of — 

Land,  per  farm |3,414  00 

Land,  per  acre 21  18 

Buildings,  per  farm 1,278  00 

Buildings,  per  farm  with  buildings 1,288  00 


TABI.E  V. — Total  and  average  value  per  farm  of  farm  implements  and 
machinery,  with  increase  and  decrease  and  per  cent  of  increase  and 
decrease  in  the  total  value,  by  decades:  Summary  1850  to  igoo. 


Census  year. 


1900 $295,910  00 

1890 192,910  00 

1880 183,227  00 

I870t j    206,700  00 

1860 1    238,264  00 

1850 1    195,794  00 


Value  of  farm 
implements 

and 
machinery. 


Increase 

Per  cent 

by 

of 

decade 

• 

increase. 

$103,000 

00 

53.4 

9,683 

00 

5.3 

1:23,473 

00 

1:11.4 

1:31,564 

00 

1:13.2 

42,470  00 

•    21.7 

Average 

value  per 

farm. 


$151  90 
106  11 
99  53 
166  96 
197  40 
155  89 


fValues  in  gold.    ^Decrease. 


The  percentage  of  increase  was  least  for  the  decade  4880  to 
1890.  After  1870  the  farmers  did  not,  until  1900,  report  as 
large  investments  in  machinery  as  they  did  prior  to  the  war. 

Oaly  two  other  Virginia  counties  reported  higher  values 
of  farming  implements  and  machinery  in  1900.  They  were 
Augusta,  with  $439,090,  and     Rockingham,    with  $436,340. 


94 


HISTORY  OF 


LIVE  STOCK. 

Values. 

The  total  value  of  the  live  stock  on  farms  only,  June  1, 
1900,  was  $1,621,639,  or  14.7  per  cent  of  $11,056,109,  the 
reported  value  of  all  farm  property.  Of  the  live  stock  value, 
domestic  animals,  worth  $1,556,935,  constituted  96  per  cent; 
poultry,  worth  $58,276,  3.6  per  cent;  and  bees,  worth  $6,428, 
.4  per  cent. 

Ta.bj^%1.— Reported  value  of  live  stock  on  farms  with  increase  and  de- 
crease and  per  cent  of  increase  and  decrease,  by  decades^  and  average 
values  per  farm  and  acre. 


Census  year. 

Value. 

Increase  of 
value. 

Per  cent 

of 
increase. 

Average 

value 
per  farm. 

Average 

value 

per  acre. 

1900 

J5l,621,639  00 
1,272,010  00 
1,099,900  00 
1,168,311  00 
1,182,355  00 
937,592  00 

1349,629  00 
172  110  00 
t68,411  00 
1:14,044  00 
244,763  00 

-     27.5 
15.6 

t5.9 
tl.2 
26.1 

$832  46 
699  68 
597  45 
943  71 
979  58 
746  49 

$5  17 
4  31 

3  68 

4  23 
3  99 
3.18 

1890 

1880 

I870t 

i860 

1850 

fValues  in  gold.   ^Decrease. 

Animals  Sold  and  Slaughtered. 

The  census  enumerators  and  special  agents  secured  reports 
of  the  amounts  received  from  the  sale  of  live  animals  in  1899, 
and  of  the  value  of  animals  slaughtered  on  farms.  With 
reference  to  reports  of  sales,  they  were  instructed  to  deduct 
from  the  amount  received  from  sales  the  amount  paid  for 
animals  purchased. 

TABiyE  II. — Receipts  from  sales  of  live  animals  and  value  of  animals 
slaughtered  on  farms,  in  iSgg,  with  averages  and  number  of  farms 
reporting. 

Farms  reporting  domestic  animals 1,911 

Amount  of  sales |5392,852  00 

Average  amount  of  sales  per  farm 205  57 

Value  of  animals  slaughtered 109,618  00 

Average  value  of  animals  slaughtered  per  farm 57  36 


lyOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  95 

Neat  Cattle. 

The  total  number  of  neat  cattle  in  Loudoun  County  re- 
ported June  1,  1900,  was  30,277,  of  which  29,432  or  97.2  per 
cent  were  on  farms,  and  845  or  2.8  per  cent  in  barns  and 
inclosures  elsewhere. 

Fauquier,  with  34,098,  led  all  counties  in  the  number  of 
neat  cattle,  Loudoun  ranking  second,  with  30,277.  In  the 
number  of  dairy  cows,  Loudoun  headed  the  list  of  Virginia 
counties  with  8,563,  or  665  more  than  its  nearest  competitor, 
Augusta  county. 

Of  calves,  Augusta  reported  5,476;  Rockingham,  5,416; 
Washington,  4,177,  and  Loudoun,  4,090. 

Tabi^b  III. — Number  of  Heifers  and  Cows  on  Farms,  fune  /,  igoo,  with 

Percentages. 

Heifers  1  and  under  2  years 1,917 

Dairy  cows  2  years  and  over 7,882 

Other  cows  2  years  and  over 588 

Total 10,387 

Per  cent: 

Heifers 18.5 

Dairy  cows 75. 9 

Other  cows. 5.6 

Dairy  Products, 

Tabi^E  IV. — Gallons  of  milk  produced  on  farms  in  iSgg,  and  gallons 
sold  and  estimated  gallons  consumed  on  the  farm  for  specified  pur- 
poses. 

Produced 3,736,382 

Sold 875,780 

Utilized  in  the  production  of — 

Butter 2,198,542 

Cream  sold :....      181,566 

Consumed  on  farms: 

Total 2,380,108 

Per  farm  reporting  milk. 1,321 

Uses  not  reported 480,494 

The  reported  quantity  of  butter  produced  on  farms  in  1899 
was  628,155  pounds,  an  average  of  349  pounds  per  farm  re- 
porting, and  an  increase  of  12.4  per  cent  over  the  production 
in  1889.     330,785  pounds  were  sold  during  the  year  1899- 


96  HISTORY  OF 

The  four  counties  of  Virginia  which  produced  the  greatest 
quantity  of  butter  on  farms  were,  in  the  order  named, 
Bedford,  727,680  pounds;  Rockingham,  658,063;  Augusta, 
633,360,  and  Loudoun,  628,155. 

Steers. 

Of  the  26,187  neat  cattle  1  year  old  and  over  in  I^oudoun 
June  1,  1900,  14,597,  or  55-7  per  cent,  were  steers.  Of  this 
number  a  few  only  were  working  oxen,  as  the  great  majority 
were  kept  exclusively  for  beef. 

Horses y  Mules,  Etc. 

The  number  of  horses  reported  on  Loudoun  farms  in  1900 
comprised  797 colts  under  1  year  old;  1,048  horses  1  and  under 
2  years,  and  7,722  horses  2  years  and  over.  The  numbers  not 
on  farms  were,  for  the  three  classes  named,  22,  I3,  and  684, 
respectively.  There  was,  therefore,  a  total  for  Loudoun 
County  of  8,406  work  horses,  and  1,880  too  young  for  work, 
making  a  grand  total  of  10,286  horses,  of  which  93  per  cent 
were  on  farms  and  7  per  cent  in  barns  and  inclosures  else- 
where. 

Oaly  two  counties  of  Virginia,  i.  e.,  Augusta  and  Rocking- 
ham, reported  more  horses  than  Loudoun,  and  the  last-named 
County  led  all  in  number  of  colts. 

The  total  number  of  mules  of  all  ages  in  the  County  in 
1900  was  109. 

Sheep,   Goats,  and  Swine. 

There  were  reported  in  Loudoun  June  1,  1900,  31,092  sheep, 
of  which  15,319  were  lambs  under  one  year,  15,040  ewes  one 
year  and  over,  and  733  rams  and  wethers  one  year  and  over. 
All  but  0.2  per  cent  of  that  number  were  on  farms. 

Loudoun  headed  the  list  of  Virginia  counties  in  number  of 
lambs  under  one  year  and  ranked  second  in  number  of  ewes 
one  year  and  over. 

The  total  number  of  goats  of  all  ages  in  Loudoun  June  1, 
1900,  was  20. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  97 

The  total  number  of  swine  of  all  ages  June  1,  1900,  was 
17,351,  of  which  15,554,  or  89.6  per  cent,  were  on  farms  an 
1,797,  or  10.4  per  cent,  in  barns  and  inclosures  elsewhere. 

Domestic   Wool. 

Tazewell  headed  the  list  of  Virginia  counties  in  1900  in 
both  number  and  weight  of  fleeces  shorn,  and  was  followed  by 
Loudoun  with  a  total  of  15,893  fleeces,  weighing,  unw^ashed, 
87,410  pounds.  Almost  double  this  amount  in  pounds  was 
sheared  in  the  fall  of  1879  and  spring  of  1880. 

Poultry  and  Bees. 

The  total  value  of  all  the  poultry  raised  on  Loudoun  farms 
in  1899  was  $114,313,  an  average  value  per  farm  of  $58.68. 

The  number  of  chickens  three  months  old  and  over,  includ- 
ing guinea  fowls,  on  farms  in  Loudoun  County  June  1,  1900, 
was  132,627;  turkeys,  7,218;  ducks,  2,171,  and  geese,  1,036. 

The  total  value  of  all  poultry  on  hand,  including  the  value 
of  all  young  chicks  unreported,  as  well  as  that  of  the  older 
fowls,  was  $58,276,  an  average  of  $29-92  per  farm  reporting. 

Shenandoah  was  the  banner  county  of  Virginia  in  ^%%  pro- 
duction, reporting  1,159,000  dozens;  Rockingham  ranked 
second,  with  1,150,500  dozens,  and  Loudoun  third,  with 
771,780  dozens,  the  fourth  highest  competitor,  Augusta 
county,  lacking  60, 580  dozens  of  this  last  number. 

Of  Virginia  counties  at  the  last  census  Loudoun  ranked 
third  in  the  number  of  chickens  on  farms,  third  in  number  of 
turkeys,  third  in  value  of  poultry  products  in  1899,  and 
second  in  value  of  poultry  on  hand  June  1,  1900. 

There  were  in  the  County  June  1,  1900,  2,225  swarms  of 
bees,  valued  at  $6,428.  They  produced  the  same  year  24,970 
pounds  of  honey  and  1,110  pounds  of  wax. 


98  HISTORY  OF 


SOIL   PRODUCTS. 

The  total  and  average  values  of  Loudoun's  farm  products 
of  1899,  with  percentages,  are  set  forth  in  the  following 
table: 

Value  of  products: 

Fed   to  live  stock |1, 018, 434  00 

Not  fed  to  live  stock 1,817,414  00 

Total ~|2,835,848  00 

Per  cent  not  fed  to  value  of  farm  property 16.4 

Average  value  per  farm : 

Fed  to  live  stock |523  00 

Not  fed  to  live  stock 933  00 

Total |1,456  00 

Average  value  per  acre: 

Products  fed $3  24 

Products  not  fed 5  79 

Average  value  per  acre  of  improved  land: 

Products  fed $4  04 

Products  not  fed  7  22 


Corn  and  Wheat. 

Of  the  100  counties  in  Virginia,  Loudoun  ranked  third  in 
corn  acreage  in  I899,  reporting  46,248  acres,  and,  the  same 
year,  headed  the  list  in  the  production  of  corn  with  1,538,860 
bushels,  an  excess  of  350,830  bushels  over  its  nearest  competi- 
tor, Fauquier  county,  which  had  planted  in  corn  98I  more 
acres. 

Loudoun  ranked  third  in  wheat  area  in  1899,  Augusta 
taking  the  lead  in  area  as  well  as  in  production.  The  next 
three  counties  in  the  order  of  production  were  Rockingham, 
Shenandoah,  and  Loudoun^  the  product  of  the  last-named 
being  447,660  bushels.     The  same  order  prevailed  in  I89O. 

Oats^  Rye,  and  Buckwheat, 

The  area  reported  under  oats  in  I9OO  was  765  acres  and  the 
product  13,070  bushels.  In  1890,  4,504  acres  were  planted 
in  this  crop  and  produced  69,380  bushels.  No  barley  was  re- 
ported in  1899. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  99 

The  reported  area  under  rye  in  1900  was  597  acres  and  the 
yield  5,560  bushels.  The  preceding  census  reported  1,830 
acres  and  a  product  of  13,137  bushels. 

Loudoun  reported  but  two  acres  of  buckwheat  under  culti- 
vation in  1899,  as  against  232  acres  in  l879.  The  yield  at  the 
last  census  was  only  12  bushels,  and  in  I879,  2,338  bushels. 

Hay  and  Forage  Crops. 

The  total  area  in  clover  in  1899  was  1,555  acres  and  the 
yield  1,598  tons.  Loudoun  reported  only  2  acres  planted  in 
alfalfa  or  Lucern  and  a  corresponding  number  of  tons.  The 
total  area  sown  in  millet  and  Hungarian  grasses  was  70  acres 
and  the  product  86  tons.  Twelve  thousand  four  hundred  and 
ninety-five  acres  were  planted  in  other  tame  and  cultivated 
grasses  in  1899,  and  11,364  tons  cut  therefrom.  The  principal 
grass  included  under  this  designation  is  timothy.  In  grains 
cut  green  for  hay  Loudoun  reported  1,342  acres  under  culti- 
vation in  1899  and  a  product  of  1,503  tons. 

The  reported  acreage  in  forage  crops  in  1899  was  867  and 
the  product  2,473  tons.  The  principal  crops  included  under 
this  head  are  corn  and  sorghum  cane  cut  green  for  forage. 
The  production  of  Loudoun  exceeded  the  tonnage  of  every 
other  county  in  the  State.  The  report  of  the  tonnage  of  the 
cornstalks  cut  where  the  crop  had  been  allowed  to  mature  for 
the  grain  was  21,614  tons. 

Miscellaneous  Crops^  Etc. 

Four  hundred  and  eighty-four  acres  planted  in  miscella- 
neous crops  in  19OO  produced  33,312  bushels. 

Seven  hundred  and  twenty-nine  acres  were  devoted  to  mis- 
cellaneous vegetables  (exclusive  of  Irish  and  sweet  potatoes, 
and  onions),  and  the  product  valued  at  $41,136. 

From  the  1 1  acres  devoted  to  sorghum  cane,  7  tons  were 
sold  and  789  gallons  of  syrup  produced. 

The  number  of  square  feet  of  land  under  glass  used  for 
agricultural  purposes  June  1,  1900,  was  48,310. 


100 


HISTORY  OF 
Orchard  Fruits ^  Etc. 


The  reported  value  of  the  orchard  products  of  1899  was 
J5 1,363. 

The  following  table  shows  the  number  of  each  class  of 
orchard  trees  of  bearing  age,  June  1,  1900,  with  products  by 
bushels: 


Trees. 


Number  of 

Number  of 

trees. 

bushels 

grown. 

83,027 

195,406 

22,446 

3.900 

4,983 

2,828 

4,179 

3,930 

1,589 

534 

117 

30 

42 

20 

Apple 

Peach  and  nectarine 

Pear 

Cherry 

Plum 

Apricot 

Unclassified  orchard  fruits 


The  farms  of  Loudoun  produced  in  1899  2,304  barrels  of 
cider,  388  barrels  of  vinegar,  and  13,530  pounds  of  dried  and 
evaporated  fruits. 

Small  Fruits,  Etc. 

The  total  value  of  small  fruits  was  $3,574,  the  number  of 
acres  under  cultivation  40,  and  the  product  62,280  quarts. 

There  were  in  lyoudoun  June  1,  I9OO,  9,742  grapevines  of 
bearing  age.  They  produced  in  1899,  1 71 ,921  pounds  of  grapes, 
from  part  of  which  yield  were  made  7(^^  gallons  of  wine. 

The  number  of  pecan,  Persian  or  English  walnut  and  other 
nut  trees  of  bearing  age  reported  was  35. 

Flowers,  Ornamental  Plants,  Etc. 

The  total  area  devoted  to  flowers  and  ornamental  plants  for 
commercial  purposes  in  1899  was  eight  acres,  the  amount  of 
sales  therefrom  $15,400,  and  the  square  feet  of  glass  surface 
reported  by  florists'  establishments  53,300.  Of  Virginia 
counties  Loudoun  ranked  fourth  in  amount  of  sales  and  third 
in  area  of  glass  surface. 

The  total  area  devoted  to  nursery  products  in  1899  was 
103^  acres  and  the  amount  of  sales  therefrom  $2,225. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  101 

FARM  LABOR  AND  FERTILIZERS. 

LABOR. 

The  scarcity  of  efficient  labor  is  one  of  the  most 
serious  troubles  with  which  the  farmers  of  this  County  have 
to  cope.  In  the  northern  portion  the  labor  is  principally 
white,  while  in  the  southern  part  there  is  a  greater  proportion 
of  the  negro  race. 

Some  farmers  employ  men  by  the  month,  paying  from  $15 
to  $\8  and  board,  but  at  a  distance  from  centers  of  population 
this  transient  labor  is  hard  to  secure,  and  even  fancy  wages 
sometimes  fail  to  attract  a  sufficient  supply.  In  other  cases  a 
laborer  and  his  family  are  allowed  to  live  on  the  farm,  and  he 
is  paid  by  the  day  for  such  work  as  is  required  of  him,  the 
usual  wage  being  75  cents  or  $1,  with  the  opportunity  of 
working  throughout  a  considerable  part  of  the  year.  The 
laborer  usually  pays  a  small  rent  for  his  cottage,  but  is 
allowed  a  piece  of  ground  free  for  a  garden.  Where  the 
farms  are  small  the  greater  part  of  the  work  is  done  by  the 
farmer  and  his  family,  and  the  situation  is  less  difficult;  but 
with  the  large  farms  it  is  often  impossible  to  secure  sufficient 
labor,  especially  during  harvesting. 

The  total  and  average  expenditures  for  labor  on  farms  in 
1899,  including  the  value  of  the  board  furnished,  was 
$292,150,  an  average  of  $149.97  per  farm  and  93  cents  per 
acre. 

FERTILIZERS. 

Commercial  fertilizers  are  used  extensively  throughout 
Loudoun.  These  consist  chiefly  of  phosphatic  fertilizers, 
although  some  nitrogenous  mixtures  are  used.  Barn- 
yard and  green  manures  are  employed  to  a  considerable 
extent.  Lime  is  applied  freely  to  many  of  the  soils.  It  is 
brought  into  the  area  in  cars,  hauled  from  there  to  the  farms 
by  wagon,  and  thrown  in  small  piles  over  the  land,  the  usual 
application  being  twenty-five  or  thirty  bushels  to  the  acre. 
It  is  almost  always  put  on  the  land  in  the  fall,  and  after  be- 
coming thoroughly  slaked  by  air  and  rain,  is  spread  over 
the  land  as  evenly  as  possible.  Applications  are  made  every 
fifth  or  sixth  year.    Where  farms  are  situated  at  considerable 


102  HISTORY  OP 

distances  from  the  railroads  but  little  lime  is  used  on  account 
of  the  difficulty  of  transportation. 

The  total  amount  expended  for  fertilizers  in  1900  was 
$107,490,  an  average  of  $55.18  per  farm  and  34  cents  per  acre 
and  amounted  to  3-8  per  cent  of  the  total  value  of  the  prod- 
ucts. In  1879,  only  one  other  county  in  the  State,  i.  e. , 
Norfolk,  spent  as  much  for  the  enrichment  of  its  soils.  The 
amount  expended  for  fertilizers  in  that  year  was  $133>349. 


EDUCATION  AND  RELIGION. 

Education. 

Few  of  the  early  settlers  of  Loudoun  enjoyed  any  other 
advantages  of  education  than  a  few  months'  attendance  at 
primary  schools  as  they  existed  in  Virginia  previous  to  the 
Revolution.  But  these  advantages  had  been  so  well  improved 
that  nearly  all  of  them  were  able  to  read  and  write  a  legible 
hand,  and  had  acquired  sufficient  knowledge  of  arithmetic 
for  the  transaction  of  ordinary  business.  They  were,  in  gen- 
eral, men  of  strong  and  penetrating  minds  and,  clearly  per- 
ceiving the  numerous  advantages  which  education  confers, 
they  early  directed  their  attention  to  the  establishment  of 
schools.  But  for  many  years  there  were  obstacles  in  addition 
to  those  incident  to  all  new  settlements,  which  prevented 
much  being  done  for  the  cause  of  education.  The  contro- 
versies in  which  they  were  involved  and  the  war  of  the  Revo- 
lution employed  nearly  all  their  thoughts  and  all  their  ener- 
gies previous  to  the  State's  admission  into  the  Federal  Union. 

Of  the  real  efficiency  of  the  Colonial  schools  of  Loudoun 
but  little  can  be  learned.  Teachers,  as  a  rule,  were  on  a  par 
with  their  surroundings.  If  they  could  read,  write  and  cipher 
to  the  "single  rule  of  three"  their  educational  qualifications 
were  deemed  sufficient.  They  generally  canvassed  the  neigh- 
borhood with  a  subscription  paper,  forming  the  schools  them- 
selves and  furnishing  the  few  necessary  books.  The  rates 
were  from  $1   to  $2.50  per  scholar  by  the  month,  and  lower 


IvOUDOUN   COUNTY,  VA.  103 

when  the  schoolmaster  "boarded  around."  But  he  was  most 
likely  to  succeed  in  forming  a  school  who  contracted  to  take 
his  pay  in  produce. 

Few  schools  were  taught  by  women  in  Colonial  times  and 
female  teachers  were  still  rare  until  a  comparatively  recent 
period. 

The  salaries  of  regularly  appointed  tutors  varied  according 
to  the  nature  of  the  schools  and  the  ability  of  the  district  to 
meet  the  expense. 

After  the  Revolution,  with  increasing  prosperity,  came  a 
spirit  of  general  improvement  and  a  new  interest  in  the  cause 
of  education. 

The  present  condition  of  education  in  Loudoun  is  hopeful, 
public  instruction  being  now  popular  with  all  classes.  Intelli- 
gence is  more  generally  diffused  than  at  any  previous  period 
of  the  County's  history,  and  happily,  the  progress  of  moral 
education  has,  on  the  whole,  fully  kept  pace  with  intellectual 
culture.  Our  boys  and  girls  are  reared  in  a  home  atmosphere 
of  purity,  of  active  thought,  and  intelligent  cultivation;  all 
their  powers  are  keenly  stimulated  by  local  and  national  pros- 
perity and  unrestricted  freedom  in  all  honest  endeavor. 

With  the  improvement  in  the  school  system  has  come  a  bet- 
ter style  of  school-houses.  The  ''little  red  school-house  on 
the  hill' '  has  given  place  to  buildings  of  tasteful  architecture, 
with  modern  improvements  conducive  to  the  comfort  and 
health  of  the  scholars,  and  the  refining  influences  of  neat  sur- 
roundings is  beginning  to  be  understood.  Separate  schools 
are  maintained  for  colored  pupils  and  graded  schools  sus- 
tained at  populous  places. 

With  free  schools,  able  teachers  consecrated  to  their  call- 
ing, and  fair  courses  of  instruction;  with  a  people  generous 
in  expenditures  for  educational  purposes,  and  a  cooperation  of 
parents  and  teachers;  with  the  many  educational  periodicals, 
the  pedagogical  books,  and  teachers'  institutes  to  broaden 
and  stimulate  the  teacher,  the  friends  of  education  in  Loudoun 
may  labor  on,  assured  that  the  new  century  will  give  abundant 
fruitage  to  the  work  which  has  so  marvelously  prospered  in 
the  old. 


104 


HISTORY  OF 


Total  Receipts  of  School  Funds  for  the  Year  Ending  fuly  31^  igo8. 
(From  report  of  Division  Superintendent  of  Schools.) 

From  State  funds |13,968  92 

"      County  school  tax 12,355  38 

'*      District  school  tax 14,640  82 

"      All  other  sources 322  30 

"      Balance  on  hand  August  1,  1907 6,644  60- 

Total |47,931  97 

Total  expenditures 42,788  58 

Balance  on  hand  August  i,  igo8 $5J43  39 

School  population,  Number  of  Schools,  Enrollment  and  Attendance  by 

Races  and  Districts,  igod-igoy. 

(From  report  of  State  Superintendent  of  Schools. 


Districts. 

School  Popula- 
tion. 

No.  of  schools 
opened. 

Whole  number 
enrolled. 

Total. 

White. 

Colored. 

White. 

Colored. 

White. 

Colored. 

748 
619 
381 
614 
628 
695 
255 

228 
216 

143 
34 
482 
457 
130 

19 

15 
9 
13 
15 
16 
6 

4 
4 
3 
1 
7 
6 
3 

538 
446 
358 
498 
467 
493 
196 

131 
196 
107 
24 
277 
231 
121 

669 
642 

Teff erson   

Ivcesburg 

Lovettsville 

465 
522 
744 

Mercer      

Mt    Gilead 

724 

Town  of  Leesburg.. 

317 

Total 

3,940 

1,690 

93 

28 

2,996 

1,087 

4,083 

Religion. 
The  Church,  with  her  faiths,  her  sacraments,  and  a  part  of 
her  ministry,  was  an  integral  part  of  the  colonization  of  the 
County  from  the  beginning  and  continuously.  Everywhere, 
with  the  spreading  population,  substantial  edifices  for  public 
worship  were  erected  and  competent  provision  made  for  the 
maintenance  of  all  the  decencies  and  proprieties  of  Christian 
religion.  The  influence  of  these  institutions,  and  of  the  faith 
which  they  embodied,  was  most  benign  and  salutary.  They 
gave  to  the  age  of  the  Revolution  its  noble  character  and  its 
deep-seated  principles,  the  force  and  momentum  of  which  have 
come  down,  with  gradually  decreasing  power,  to  our  own  day. 
But  with  these  institutions  and  with  their  proper  effect  and 
influence  was  mingled  the  fatal  leaven  of  secularity. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA. 


105 


All  the  leading  denominations  are  represented  in  Loudoun 
by  churches  and  congregations  to  the  extent  shown  by  the 
following  table  of  statistics,  representing  conditions  as  they 
existed  at  the  close  of  the  calendar  year  1906,  and  based  upon 
the  returns  of  individual  church  organizations  so  far  as 
received  by  the  Census  Ofl&ce,  through  which  Bureau  they 
were  obtained  for  initial  publication  in  this  work. 


Denomination. 


All  denominations 

Baptist  bodies: 

Baptists — 

Southern  Baptist  Convention 

National  Baptist  Convention  (colored) 

Free  Baptists 

Primitive  Baptists 

Friends: 

Society  of  Friends  (Orthodox) 

Religious  Society  of  Friends  (Hicksite) 

Lutheran  bodies: 

General    Synod  of    the  Evangelical  Lutheran 

Church  in  the  United  States  of  America 

Methodist  bodies:* 

Methodist  Episcopal  Church 

Methodist  Episcopal  Church  (South) 

Colored  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 

Presbyterian  bodies: 

Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United  States  (South).. 

Protestant  Episcopal  Church 

Reformed  bodies: 

Reformed  Church  in  the  United  States 

Roman  Catholic  Church 


Total 
number 

of 
organi- 
zations. 


97 


Communi- 
cants or 
members. 


Total  num- 
ber re- 
ported. 


7,606 


1,199 

1,235 

55 

171 

122 

278 


645 

1,179 

1,716 

45 

345 
416 

140 
60 


*Leesburg  had,  until  a  year  or  so  ago  when  it  was  razed,  one  of  the 
oldest  Methodist  churches  in  America.  The  building,  a  large  stone 
structure,  long  abandoned,  with  galleries  around  three  tides,  stood  in 
the  midst  of  an  old  Methodist  graveyard  in  which  are  tombstones  more 
than  a  century  old.  It  was  built,  according  to  report,  in  1780. 

Leesburgis  the  oldest  Methodist  territory  in  the  bounds  of  the  Balti- 
more Conference  in  Virginia,  and  it  was  here  that  the  first  Methodist 
Conference  held  in  the  State  convened  May  19,  1778. 
45—8 


IftjstnrtoL 


FORMATION. 

In  1742,  Prince  William  County,  a  part  of  the  stupendous 
Culpeper  grant,  was  divided  and  the  county  of  Fairfax  created 
and  named  in  honor  of  its  titled  proprietor.  Commencing  at 
the  confluence  of  the  Potomac  and  Occoquan  rivers,  the  line 
of  demarcation  followed  the  latter  stream  and  its  tributary, 
Bull  Run,  to  its  ultimate  source  in  the  mountain  of  that  name, 
from  which  point  it  was  continued  to  the  summit  of  said 
mountain,  pursuing  thereafter  a  direct  course  to  the  thorough- 
fare in  the  Blue  Ridge,  known  as  "Ashby's  Gap." 

In  1757,  Fairfax  was  divided  and  the  territory  west  of  its 
altered  boundary  christened  "Loudoun  County."  The  new 
line  followed  the  stream  called  DiflBcult  Run,  from  its  junction 
with  the  Potomac  to  its  highest  spring-head,  and  from  that 
point  was  continued  in  a  direct  line  to  the  northeast  border 
of  Prince  William  County.  This  boundary  was  afterwards 
changed  and  the  present  line  between  Loudoun  and  Fairfax 
substituted  (see  * 'Boundaries,"  page  17). 

The  following  are  excerpts  from  the  proceedings  of  the 
Virginia  House  of  Burgesses  that  led  to  the  creation  of  Lou- 
doun County  in  May,  1757.  The  act  authorizing  the  division 
of  Fairfax  and  establishment  of  Loudoun  is  given  intact : 

On  April  20,  1757,  a  "petition  of  sundry  Inhabitants  of  Fairfax 
County,  praying  a  Division  of  the  said  County,  was  presented  to  the 
House  and  read,  and  referred  to  the  Consideration  of  the  next  Session 
of  Assembly." 

(107) 


108  HISTORY  OF 

On  Friday,  April  22,  1757,  "Mr.  Charles  Carter,  from  the  Committee 
on  Propositions  and  Grievances,  reported,  that  the  Committee  had  had 
under  their  Consideration  divers  Propositions,  from  several  Counties, 
to  them  referred,  and  had  come  to  several  Resolutions  thereupon,  which 
he  read  in  in  Place,  and  then  delivered  in  at  the  Table,  where  the  same 
were  again  twice  read,  and  agreed  to  by  the  House,  as  follow:" 

'''^ Resolved,  That  the  Petition  of  sundry  Back-Inhabitants  of  the  said 
County  of  Fairfax,  praying  the  same  may  be  divided  into  two  distinct 
Counties,  by  a  Ivine  from  the  Mouth  up  the  main  Branch  of  Difficult- 
Run  to  the  Head  thereof,  and  thence  by  a  streight  Line  to  the  Mouth  of 
Rocky-Bjxn,  is  reasonable." 

The  following  Monday  the  bill  was  again  presented  to  the 
House  by  Charles  Carter,  of  the  Committee  of  Propositions 
and  Grievances,  and  Friday,  April  29,  1757,  was  ordered 
engrossed  and  read  a  third  time. 

Monday,  May  2,  1757,  the  engrossed  Bill,  entitled,  "An 
Act  for  dividing  the  county  of  Fairfax,"  was  read  a  third 
time,  passed  by  the  House,  and  sent  to  the  Council  for  their 
"concurrence."  It  received  the  assent  of  the  governor 
Wednesday,  June  8,  1757. 

An  Act  for  Dividing  the  County  of  Fairfax. 
(Passed  May  2,  1757.) 

I.  Whereas,  Many  inconveniences  attend  the  upper  inhabitants  of 
the  county  of  Fairfax,  by  reason  of  the  large  extent  of  the  said  county, 
and  their  remote  situation  from  the  court  house,  and  the  said  inhabi- 
tants have  petitioned  this  present  general  assembly  that  the  said  county 
may  be  divided:  Be  it,  therefore,  enacted,  by  the  Lieutenant-Governor, 
Council,  and  Burgesses  of  this  present  General  Assembly,  and  it  is 
hereby  enacted,  by  the  authority  of  the  same.  That  from  and  after  the 
1st  day  of  July  next  ensuing  the  said  county  of  Fairfax  be  divided  into 
two  counties,  that  is  to  say:  All  that  part  thereof,  lying  above  Difficult 
run,  which  falls  into  Patowmack  river,  and  by  a  line  to  be  run  from  the 
head  of  the  same  run,  a  straight  course,  to  the  mouth  of  Rocky  run, 
shall  be  one  distinct  county,  and  called  and  known  by  the  name  of 
Ivoudoun:  And  all  that  part  thereof  below  the  said  run  and  course,  shall 
be  one  other  distinct  county,  and  retain  the  name  of  Fairfax. 

II.  And  for  the  due  administration  of  justice  in  the  said  county  of 
Ivoudoun,  after  the  same  shall  take  place:  Be  it  further  enacted  by  the 
authority  aforesaid.  That  after  the  first  day  of  July  a  court  for  the  said 
county  of  Loudoun  be  constantly  held  by  the  justices  thereof,  upon  the 
second  Tuesday  in  every  month,  in  such  manner  as  by  the  laws  of  this 
colony  is  provided,  and  shall  be  by  their  commission  directed. 


IvOUDOUN   COUNTY,  VA.  109 

III.  Provided  always,  That  nothing  herein  contained  shall  be  con- 
structed to  hinder  the  sheriff  or  collector  of  the  said  county  of  Fairfax, 
as  the  same  now  stands  entire  and  undivided,  from  collecting  and  mak- 
ing distress  for  anj'  public  dues,  or  officers  fees,  which  shall  remain 
unpaid  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  said  county  of  Loudoun  at  the  time  of 
its  taking  place;  but  such  sheriff  or  collector  shall  have  the  same  power 
to  collect  or  distrain  for  such  dues  and  fees,  and  shall  be  answerable  for 
them  in  the  same  manner  as  if  this  act  had  never  been  made,  any  law, 
usage,  or  custom  to  the  contrary  thereof  in  any  wise  notwithstanding. 

IV.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  by  the  authority  aforesaid.  That  the 
court  of  the  said  county  of  Fairfax  shall  have  jurisdiction  of  all  actions 
and  siiits,  both  in  law  and  equity,  which  shall  be  depending  before  them 
at  the  time  the  said  division  shall  take  place;  and  shall  and  may  try  and 
determine  all  such  actions  and  suits,  and  issue  process  and  award  execu- 
tion in  any  such  action  or  suit  in  the  same  manner  as  if  this  act  had 
never  been  made,  any  law,  usage,  or  custom  to  the  contrary  in  any  wise 
notwithstanding. 

V.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  by  the  authority  aforesaid,  That  out  of 
every  hundred  pounds  of  tobacco,  paid  in  discharge  of  quit  rents,  secre- 
tary's, clerk's,  sheriff's,  surveyor's,  or  other  officers  fees,  and  so  pro- 
portionably  for  a  greater  or  lesser  quantity,  there  shall  be  made  the 
following  abatements  or  allowances  to  the  payer,  that  is  to  say:  For 
tobacco  due  in  the  county  of  Fairfax  ten  pounds  of  tobacco,  and  for 
tobacco  due  in  the  county  of  Loudoun  twenty  pounds  of  tobacco;  and 
that  so  much  of  the  act  of  the  assembly,  intituled.  An  Act  for  amending 
the  Staple  of  Tobacco,  and  preventing  frauds  in  his  Majesty's  customs, 
as  relates  to  anything  within  the  purview  of  this  act,  shall  be,  and  is 
hereby  repealed  and  made  void. 


DERIVATION  OF  NAME. 

lyoudoun  County  was  named  in  honor  of  Lord  Loudoun,  a 
representative  peer  of  Scotland,  who,  the  year  before  its 
establishment,  and  during  the  French  and  Indian  war,  had 
been  appointed  captain-general  and  governor-in-chief  of  the 
province  of  Virginia,  and  commander-in-chief  of  the  British 
military  forces  in  the  Colonies. 

His  military  avocations,  however,  prevented  him  from  en- 
tering upon  the  duties  of  the  gubernatorial  office,  and  it  is 
believed  that  he  never  visited  the  colony  of  Virginia.  Din- 
widdle continued  in  the  control  of  its  affairs,  while  Loudoun 


110  HISTORY  OF 

turned  his  attention  to  military  matters,  in  which  his  indo- 
lence, indecision,  and  general  inefi&ciency  were  most  conspicu- 
ous and  disastrous.  Franklin  said  of  him:  "He  is  like  little 
St.  George  on  the  sign-boards;  always  on  horseback,  but 
never  goes  forward." 

Until  his  early  recall  to  England,  contemporaneous  writers 
and  brother  officers  mercilessly  criticised  Loudoun  "whom  a 
child  might  outwit,  or  terrify  with  a  pop-gun." 

Hardesty's  Historical  and  Geographical  Encyclopedia  con- 
tains the  following  succinct  account  of  the  public  services 
rendered  by  this  noted  Scotchman: 

•'John  Campbell,  son  of  Hugh,  Earl  of  Loudoun,  was  born  in  1705, 
and  succeeded  his  father  in  the  title  in  November,  1731.  In  July,  1756, 
he  arrived  in  New  York  with  the  appointment  of  governor- in-chief  of 
Virginia,  and  also  with  the  commission  of  commander-in-chief  of  the 
British  forces  in  America,  but,  proving  inefficient,  returned  to  England 
in  1757.  He  was  made  lyieutenant-General  in  1758,  and  General  in  1770. 
He  died  April  27,  1782,  and  was  succeeded  by  Norborne  Berkeley,  Baron 
de  Botetourt,  as  governor  of  Virginia,  in  l768." 


SETTLEMENT  AND  PERSONNEL. 

The  permanent  settlement  of  lyoudoun  began  between  the 
years  1725  and  1730  while  the  County  was  yet  a  part  of  Prince 
William  and  the  property  of  lyord  Fairfax,  the  immigrants 
securing  ninety-nine-year  leases  on  the  land  at  the  rate  of  two 
shillings  sterling  per  100  acres.  The  above-noted  interim 
saw  a  steady  influx  of  the  fine  old  English  Cavalier*  stock, 
the  settlers  occupying  large  tracts  of  land  in  the  eastern  and 
southern  portions  of  the  County  or  most  of  the  territory 
extending  from  the  Potomac  River  southward  to  Middleburg 
and  from  the  Catoctin  and  Bull  Run  mountains  eastward  to 
the  eastern  border  of  the  County.  It  is  more  to  this  noble  and 
chivalric  strain  than  to  any  other  that  Loudoun  owes  her 
present  unrivalled    social   eminence. 

*This  stock  was  the  first  to  introduce  and  foster  slavery  in  the 
County.— Goodhart's  History  of  the  Loudoun  Rangers. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  HI 

John  Esten  Cooke's  faithful  and  eloquent  delincsticn  of 
Virginia  character  is  peculiarly  applicable  to  this  Cavalier 
element  of  Loudoun  society.  Some  conception  of  that  au- 
thor's grandiose  style  and  intimate  knowledge  of  his  subject 
may  be  gained  from  the  following  passage: 

••The  Virginian  of  the  present  time  has  ingrained  in  his  character 
the  cordial  instincts  and  spirit  of  courtesy  and  hospitality  which  marked 
his  ancestors.  He  has  the  English  preference  for  the  life  of  the  country 
to  the  life  of  the  city;  is  more  at  home  among  green  fields  and  rural 
scenes  than  in  streets;  loves  horses  and  dogs,  breeds  of  cattle,  the  sport 
of  fox  hunting,  wood-fires,  Christmas  festivities,  the  society  of  old 
neighbors,  political  discussions,  traditions  of  this  or  that  local  celebrity, 
and  to  entertain  everybody  to  the  extent  of,  and  even  beyond,  his 
limited  means.  Many  of  these  proclivities  have  been  laughed  at,  and 
the  people  have  been  criticised  as  provincial  and  narrow-minded;  but 
after  all  it  is  good  to  love  one's  native  soil,  and  to  cherish  the  home 
traditions  which  give  character  to  a  race.  Of  the  Virginians  it  may  be 
said  that  they  have  objected  in  all  times  to  being  rubbed  down  to  a 
uniformity  with  all  the  rest  of  the  world,  and  that  they  have  generally 
retained  the  traits  which  characterized  their  ancestors." 

The  northwestern  part  of  the  County,  known  as  the  "Ger- 
man Settlement,"  a  section  of  about  125  square  miles,  extend- 
ing from  Catoctin  Mountain  westward  to  the  Short  Hill 
Mountains  and  from  the  Potomac  River  southward  to  near 
Wheatland,  was  originally  settled  by  a  sturdy  and  vigorous 
race  of  Germans,*  principally  from  Pennsylvania,  but  a  few 
from  New  York,  in  which  two  colonies  they  had  settled  on 
their  arrival,  only  a  few  years  before,  from  the  Palatine  states 
of  Germany.  They  came  to  Loudoun  between  the  years  1730 
and  1735,t  about  the  time  of  the  Cavalier  settlements. 

These  German  settlers  were  a  patient,  God-fearing  people, 
naturally  rugged,  and  very  tenacious  in  the  preservation  of 
their  language,  religion,  customs  and  habits.  Every  stage  in 
their  development  has  been  marked  by  a  peaceable  and  orderly 
deportment — a  perfect  submission  to  the  restraints  of  civil 
authority. 

*The  first  sheep  were  brought  to  the  County  by  these  settlers. — His- 
tory of  the  Loudoun  Rangers. 

tl732  was  most  likely  the  year  in  which  the  earliest  of  these  German 
settlers  arrived  in  Loudoun. 


112  HISTORY    OF 

The  earliest  of  these  German  arrivals,  with  native  foresight 
and  a  proper  appreciation  of  the  dangers  incident  to  border 
settlement  in  that  day  of-  bloody  Indian  atrocities,  came  to 
Loudoun  in  an  organized  body,  embracing  sixty  or  ^lore 
families. 

Many  of  the  males  were  artisans  of  no  mean  ability,  and  plied 
their  respective  trades  as  conscientiously  and  assiduously  as 
others,  in  the  rude  manner  of  the  times,  tilled  their  newly- 
acquired  acres. 

In  this  way,  a  congenial,  stable,  and  self-sustaining  colony, 
founded  on  considerations  of  common  safety  and  economic 
expediency,  was  established  amongst  these  storied  hills  of 
frontier  Virginia. 

Almost  simultaneously  with  these  settlements  came  other 
emigrants  from  Pennsylvania  and  the  then  neighboring  colon- 
ies, among  them  many  members  of  the  Society  of  Friends  or 
Quakers.*  Not  a  few  of  this  faith  came  direct  from  England 
and  Ireland,  attracted  by  the  genial  climate,  fertile  soils  and 
bountiful  harvests,  accounts  of  which  had  early  gained  wide- 
spread circulation.  They  chose  homes  in  the  central  portion 
of  the  County,  southwest  of  Waterford  and  west  of  Lessburg, 
that  section  being  generally  known  as  the  "Quaker  Settle- 
ment." 

Each  summer  brought  them  new  accessions  of  prosperity 
and  devout  brethren  to  swell  their  numbers;  and  soon  they 
had  caused  the  wilderness  to  blossom  as  the  rose.  Here  they 
found  freedom  of  religious  and  moral  thought,  a  temperate 
climate,  and  the  wholesome  society  of  earnest  compatriots. 

Then,  as  now,  a  plain,  serious  people,  they  have  left  the 
impress  of  their  character — thrifty,  industrious,  and  con- 
spicuously honest — upon  the  whole  of  the  surrounding  dis- 
trict. 

No  concerted  violence,  it   is   believed,    was  offered   these 

*The  term  Quaker,  originally  given  in  reproach,  has  been  so  often 
used,  by  friend  as  well  as  foe,  that  it  is  no  longer  a  term  of  derision,  but 
is  the  generally  accepted  designation  of  a  member  of  the  Society  of 
Friends. — Loudoun  Rangers. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  113 

settlers  by  the  Indians  who  seem  to  have  accredited  them 
with  the  same  qualities  of  honesty,  virtue,  and  benevolence, 
by  the  exercise  of  which  William  'Penn,  the  founder  of  the 
faith  in  Pennsylvania,  had  won  their  lasting  confidence  and 
esteem. 

The  Quaker  is  a  type  with  which  all  the  world  is  familiar 
and  needs  no  particular  portrayal  in  this  work.  The  Quakers 
of  l/oudoun  have  at  all  times  remained  faithful  adherents  of 
the  creed,  their  peculiar  character,  manners,  and  tenets  differ- 
ing to  no  considerable  extent  from  those  of  other  like  colon- 
ies, wherever  implanted. 

It  is  doubtful  if  any  race  has  done  more  to  stimulate  and 
direct  real  progress,  and  to  develop  the  vast  resources  of 
Loudoun,  than  that  portion  of  our  earlier  population  known 
as  the  Scotch-Irish.  Their  remarkable  energy,  thrift,  staid- 
ness,  and  fixed  religious  views  made  their  settlements  the 
centers  of  civilization  and  improvement  in  Colonial  times; 
that  their  descendants  proved  sturdy  props  of  the  great  cause 
that  culminated  in  the  independence  of  the  United  States  is  a 
matter  of  history. 

EARLY  HABITS,  CUSTOMS,  AND  DRESS. 

HABITS. 

The  earliest  permanent  settlements  of  Loudoun  having 
been  separately  noted  in  the  foregoing  paragraphs  a 
generalized  description  of  the  habits,  customs,  and  dress  of 
these  settlers,  as  well  as  their  unorganized  pioneer  predeces- 
sors and  the  steady  promiscuous  stream  of  homeseekers  that 
poured  into  the  County  until  long  after  the  Revolution,  will 
now  be  attempted. 

The  early  settlers,  with  but  one  class  exception,  had  no 
costly  tastes  to  gratify,  no  expensive  habits  to  indulge,  and 
neither  possessed  nor  cared  for  luxuries.  Their  subsistence, 
such  as  they  required,  cost  but  little  of  either  time  or  labor. 
The  corn  from  which  they  made  their  bread  came  forth  from 
the  prolific  soil  almost  at  the  touch  of  their  rude  plows.  Their 


114  HISTORY  OF 

cattle  and  hogs  found  abundant  sustenance  in  the  broad 
pastures  which,  in  the  summer,  yielded  the  richest  grass,  and 
in  the  woods  where,  in  the  fall,  the  ground  was  strewn  with 
acorns  and  other  like  provender. 

The  pioneer  lived  roughly;  the  German  from  the  Palatinate 
kept  house  like  the  true  peasant  that  he  was;  the  planter 
lived  somewhat  more  sumptuously  and  luxuriously;  but,  in 
nearly  every  case,  the  table  was  liberally  supplied.  Hominy, 
milk,  corn-bread,  and  smoked  or  jerked  meats  seem  to  have 
been  most  popular  with  the  humbler  classes. 

Ice  was  not  stored  for  summer  use,  fruits  were  few  and  not 
choice,  and  the  vegetables  limited;  our  ancestors,  at  that 
time,  having  no  acquaintance  with  the  tomato,  cauliflower, 
egg-plant,  red-pepper,  okra,  and  certain  other  staple  vege- 
tables of  today.  The  Indians  had  schooled  them  in  the  prep- 
aration of  succotash  with  the  beans  grown  among  the  corn, 
and  they  raised  melons,  squashes,  and  pumpkins  in  abundance. 

Corn  for  bread  was  broken  in  a  mortar  and  ground  in  a 
grater  or  hand-mill.  Mills,  in  the  early  days,  were  few  and 
far  apart,  some  of  the  back-settlers  being  compelled  to  travel 
many  miles  for  their  grist.  This  condition  gave  origin  to  the 
adage  "first  come  first  served,"  and  frequently  carried  the 
late  arrivals  over  night  and,  at  times,  prolonged  the  trip  to 
procure  a  few  bushels  of  meal  three  or  four  days.  * 'Band- 
mills,"  run  by  horses,  and  small  water  mills,  where  the 
situation  permitted,  came  into  use  to  supply  the  demand  of 
larger  ones.  The  building  of  a  good  mill,  it  must  be  confesed, 
was  hailed  with  greater  satisfaction  than  the  erection  of  a 
church. 

The  more  primitive  of  these  peoples  ate  from  wooden 
trenchers  and  platters;  sat  upon  three-legged  stools  or  wooden 
blocks;  used  bear's  grease  in  lieu  of  lard  and  butter,  and  cut 
their  foods  with  the  same  sheath-knives  used  in  disem- 
bowelling and  skinning  the  deer  killed  by  their  rifles.  They 
had  no  money  and  their  scant  furniture  was  essentially  crude, 
sometimes  including  a  few  pewter  dishes  and  plates  and 
spoons,  but  usually  nothing  beyond  wooden  bowls,  trenchers, 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  115 

and  noggins,  with  gourds  and  squashes  daintily  cut.  The 
horse  trough  served  as  a  wash-basin,  and  water  buckets  were 
seldom  seen.  The  family  owning  an  iron  pot  and  a  kitchen 
table  were  esteemed  rich  and  extravagant,  and  china  and  crock- 
ery ware  were  at  once  practically  unknown  and  uncraved. 
Feather-beds  and  bedsteads  were  equally  eschewed,  these 
hardy  men  who  had  conquered  the  wilderness  not  disdaining, 
when  night  came,  to  sleep  upon  a  dirt  floor  with  a  bear-skin 
for  covering. 

With  muscles  of  iron  and  hearts  of  oak,  they  united  a 
tenderness  for  the  weak  and  a  capability  for  self-sacrifice 
worthy  of  an  ideal  knight  of  chivalry;  and  their  indomitable 
will,  which  recognized  no  obstacle  as  insuperable,  was  equalled 
only  by  their  rugged  integrity  which  regarded  dishonesty  as 
an  offense  as  contemptible  as  cowardice.  For  many  years 
they  dwelt  beyond  the  pale  of  governmental  restraint,  nor 
did  they  need  the  presence  of  either  courts  or  constables. 
Crimes  against  person,  property,  or  public  order  were  of  so 
infrequent  occurrence  as  to  be  practically  unheard  of.  In 
moral  endowments— even  if  uot  in  mental  attainments — these 
sturdy  pioneers  of  Loudoun  were,  it  must  be  admitted,  vastly 
superior  to  many  of  those  who  followed  them  when  better 
facilities  for  transportation  rendered  the  County  more  access- 
ible. 

Society  before  and  for  many  years  after  the  Revolution  was 
easy,  agreeable,  and  somewhat  refined.  Traveling  was  slow, 
difficult,  and  expensive.  For  society,  the  inhabitants  were 
mainly  dependent  upon  themselves;  the  ties  of  social  life  were 
closely  drawn.  Books,  newspapers,  and  magazines  were  rare; 
men  and  women  read  less,  but  talked  more,  and  wrote  longer 
and  more  elaborate  letters  than  now.  ''Cheap  postage  has 
spoiled  letter  writing."  Much  time  was  spent  in  social  visits; 
tea  parties,  and  supper  parties  were  common.  The  gentlemen 
had  their  clubs  and  exclusive  social  gatherings,  sometimes  too 
convivial  in  their  character,  and  occasionally  a  youth  of 
promise  fell  a  victim  to  the  temptations  of  a  mistaken  hospi- 
tality. "Gaming  was  more  common  among  respectable  people 
than  at  the  present  day." 


116  HISTORY  OF 

CUSTOMS. 

Of  leisure,  all  classes  at  all  times  had  a  superabund- 
ance, and  it  was  cheerfully  devoted  to  mutual  assistance 
without  thought  of  recompense,  except  in  kind.  If  anyone 
fell  behind  through  sickness  or  other  misfortune,  his  neigh- 
bors would  cheerfully  proffer  their  services,  often  making  of 
the  occasion  a  frolic  and  mingling  labor  with  amusement. 

On  days  set  apart  for  the  pulling  of  flax  and  wheat-cutting, 
the  neighbors  and  their  children  assembled  in  happy  mood 
and  as  cheerfully  applied  themselves  to  their  gratuitous  tasks. 
While  the  men  were  pulling  the  flax  or  reaping  and  shocking 
the  wheat,  the  women  at  the  house  were  preparing  the 
harvest-noon  feast.  The  rough  table,  for  which  the  side  and 
bottom  boards  of  a  wagon  were  frequently  used,  was  placed 
when  practicable  under  the  shade  of  a  spreading  tree  in  the 
yard.  The  visitors  contributed  from  their  meagre  store  such 
additional  dishes,  knives,  forks,  and  spoons  as  were  needed. 
Around  the  table,  seated  on  benches,  stools,  or  splint-bottom 
chairs,  with  such  appetites  as  could  only  be  gained  from 
honest  toil  in  the  open  field,  the  company  partook  of  the 
bounties  set  before  them.  These  consisted,  in  addition  to  the 
never-failing  corn-bread  and  bacon,  of  bear  and  deer  meat, 
turkey,  or  other  game  in  season,  and  an  abundance  of  vege- 
tables which  they  called  ''roughness."  The  bread,  styled 
"  jonny-cake,"  was  baked  on  journey  or  "  jonny"  boards, 
about  two  feet  long  and  eight  inches  wide.  The  dough  was 
spread  over  the  boards  which  were  then  placed  before  the  fire; 
after  one  side  was  browned,  the  cake  was  reversed  and  the 
unbaked  side  turned  toward  the  flames. 

However  strictly  it  might  be  abstained  from  at  other  times, 
a  harvest  without  whisky  was  like  a  dance  without  a  fiddle. 
It  was  partaken  of  by  all — each  one,  male  and  female,  drink- 
ing from  the  bottle  and  passing  it  to  his  or  her  nearest 
neighbor.  Drinking  vessels  were  dispensed  with  as  mere  idle 
superfluities. 

Dinner  over,  the  company  scattered,  the  elders  withdrawing 
in  a  body  and  seating  or  stretching  themselves  upon  the 
ground. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  147 

After  the  filling  and  lighting  of  the  inevitable  pipe,  conver- 
sation would  become  general.  The  news  of  the  day — not 
always,  as  may  be  imagined,  very  recent — was  commented 
upon,  and  then,  as  now,  political  questions  were  sagely  and 
earnestly  discussed.  Stories,  mainly  of  adventure,  were  told; 
hairbreadth  escapes  from  Indian  massacre  recounted  and  the 
battles  of  late  wars  fought  again  beneatli  the  spreading 
branches  of  the  trees.  Meanwhile,  the  boys  and  girls  wan- 
dered off  in  separate  and  smaller  groups,  singing  and  playing 
and  making  love  much  in  the  manner  of  today. 

Another  amusement  of  those  days,  and  one  that  did  not 
fall  into  disfavor  for  many  years  thereafter,  was  what  was 
known  as  "shucking  bees."  To  these  gatherings  were  in- 
vited both  old  and  young.  Stacks  of  corn  in  the  husk  were 
piled  upon  the  ground  near  the  crib  where  the  golden  ears 
were  finally  to  be  stored.  Upon  the  assemblage  of  the  guests, 
those  with  proud  records  as  corn-huskers  were  appointed 
leaders,  they  in  turn  filling  the  ranks  of  their  respective  par- 
ties by  selection  from  the  company  present,  the  choice  going 
to  each  in  rotation.  The  corn  was  divided  into  approximately 
equal  piles,  one  of  which  was  assigned  to  each  party.  The 
contest  was  then  begun  with  much  gusto  and  the  party  first 
shucking  its  allotment  declared  the  winner.  The  lucky 
finder  of  a  red  ear  was  entitled  to  a  kiss  from  the  girls. 

Supper  always  followed  this  exciting  contest  and  after  sup- 
per came  the  dance.  Stripped  of  dishes,  the  tables  were 
quickly  drawn  aside  and  the  room  swept  by  eager  hands. 
Then  came  the  struggle  for  partners  and  the  strife  to  be  "first 
on  the  floor. ' '  Usually  the  violin  furnished  the  only  music 
and  the  figures  most  in  favor  were  the  reel  and  the  jig,  in 
which  all  participated  with  a  zest  and  abandon  unknown  to 
the  modern  ballroom.  "They  danced  all  night  till  broad  day- 
light and  went  home  with  the  girls  in  the  morning,"  some  on 
foot  and  some  on  horseback,  practically  the  only  means  of 
getting  there. 

"  Dreadful  prodigality"  does  not  too  extravagantly  describe 
the  drinking  habits  of  the  people  of  Virginia  in  the  latter  half 


118  HISTORY  OF 

of  the  eighteenth  century.  They  consumed  an  enormous 
quantity  of  liquors  in  proportion  to  their  numbers,  and  drank 
indiscriminately,  at  all  hours  of  the  day  and  night.  West 
India  rum  was  the  favorite  drink  of  the  people,  because  -the 
cheapest,  and  was  bought  by  the  puncheon.  Most  every 
cellar,  especially  in  the  Cavalier  settlements,  had  its  barrel  of 
cider,  Bordeaux  and  sherry  and  Madeira  wines,  French  bran- 
dies, delicate  Holland  gins,  cordials,  syrups,  and  every  sort  of 
ale  and  beer.  Drunkenness  was  so  common  as  to  excite  no 
comment,  and  drinking  after  dinner  and  at  parties  was  always 
hard,  prolonged,  and  desperate,  so  that  none  but  the  most 
seasoned  old  topers — the  judges,  squires,  and  parsons  of  six- 
bottle  capacity — ever  escaped  with  their  sea-legs  in  an  insur- 
able condition. 

While  a  large  proportion  of  the  home-seekers  that  had 
settled  in  the  County  immediately  after  the  Revolution  had 
received  a  rudimentary  education,  and  had  lived  among  com- 
munities which  may  be  said  to  have  been  comparatively  cul- 
tured, most  of  them  were  hardy,  rough,  uncultivated  back- 
woodsmen, accustomed  only  to  the  ways  of  the  frontier  and 
camp.  Many  of  them  had  served  in  the  war  of  the  Revolution 
and  all  of  them  in  the  border  wars  with  the  Indians.  Though 
brave,  hospitable  and  generous,  they  were  more  at  ease  be- 
neath the  forest  bivouac  than  in  the  "living-room"  of  the 
log-cabin,  and  to  swing  a  woodman's  axe  among  the  lofty 
trees  of  the  primeval  forest  was  a  pursuit  far  more  congenial 
to  their  rough  nature  and  active  temperament  than  to  mingle 
with  society  in  settled  communities.  Their  habits  and  man- 
ners were  plain,  simple,  and  unostentatious.  Their  clothing 
was  generally  made  of  the  dressed  skins  of  the  deer,  wolf, 
or  fox,  while  those  of  the  buffalo  and  elk  supplied  them  with 
covering  for  their  feet  and  heads.  Their  log-cabins  were 
destitute  of  glass,  nails,  hinges,  or  locks. 

Education  during  the  early  settlements  received  but  little 
attention  in  I^oudoun,  and  school-houses,  always  of  logs,  were 
scarcely  to  be  seen.  Schools  were  sometimes  opened  at  private 
houses  or  at  the  residence  of  the  teacher;  but  "book  larnin" 
was  considered  too  impracticable  to  be  of  much  value. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  119 

While  the  standard  of  morality,  commercial  as  well  as  social, 
was  of  a  high  order,  few  of  these  settlers  were  members  of  any 
church.  Many  of  them,  however,  had  been  reared  in  religious 
communities  by  Christian  parents;  had  been  taught  to  regard 
the  Sabbath  as  a  day  of  worship,  and  had  been  early  im- 
pressed with  a  sense  of  the  necessity  of  religious  faith  and 
practice.  Some  of  the  prominent  citizens  encouraged  these 
views  by  occasionally  holding  meetings  in  their  cabins,  at 
which  the  scriptures  and  sometimes  sermons  were  read  and 
hymns  sung,  but  no  prayers  were  offered.  The  restraining 
and  molding  influence  of  these  early  Christian  efforts  upon 
the  habits  and  morals  of  the  people  was  in  every  respect  whole- 
some and  beneficial.  The  attention  of  the  people  was  arrested 
and  turned  to  the  study  and  investigation  of  moral  and  relig- 
ious questions,  and  direction  was  given  to  the  contemplation 
of  higher  thoughts  and  the  pursuit  of  a  better  life. 

In  the  meantime,  other  elements  were  introduced  which 
effected  a  radical  change  in  the  habits  of  the  people  for  both 
good  and  evil.  The  first  settlers  lived  in  the  country,  in  the 
woods  and  wilds,  whose  "clearings"  were  far  apart.  Not 
one  in  ten  of  them  had  dwelt  in  any  town,  or  even  visited  one 
having  as  many  as  a  thousand  inhabitants.  And  now  there 
came  the  merchant,  the  lawyer,  the  doctor,  and  the  mechanic, 
who  resided  in  the  towns  which  began  to  grow  and  to  take 
on  new  life.  Most  of  these  had  enjoyed  superior  advantages, 
so  far  as  related  to  education  and  that  worldly  wisdom  which 
comes  from  experience  in  older  communities.  Some  of  them 
had  come  from  across  the  ocean  and  others  from  the  large 
American  cities,  bringing  with  them  manners,  customs,  fur- 
niture, and  wares,  of  which  the  like  had  never  been  seen  by 
the  oldest  inhabitant. 

And  thus  were  gradually  introduced  the  methods  and  appli- 
ances of  a  more  advanced  civilization.  The  pioneer  and  his 
wife,  hearing  of  these  things,  would  occasionally  '  'go  to  town' ' 
to  "see  the  sights,"  and  would  there  discover  that  there  were 
many  useful  and  convenient  articles  for  the  farm  and  kitchen 
which  might  be  procured  in  exchange  for  their  corn,  bacon, 
eggs,  honey,  and  hides;  and  although  the  shrewd  merchant 


120  HISTORY  OF 

was  careful  to  exact  his  cent  per  cent,  the  prices  asked  were 
little  heeded  by  the  purchaser  who  was  as  ignorant  of  the 
value  of  the  commodities  offered  as  he  was  delighted  with  their 
novelty  and  apparent  usefulness. 

DRESS. 

The  subject  of  dress  is  approached  w4th  reluctance 
and  its  description  diffidently  essayed.  But  the  task  has 
seemed  mandatory  as  the  manners  of  a  people  can  not  other- 
wise be  fully  understood.  The  stately,  ceremonious  inter- 
course of  the  sexes,  the  stiff  and  elaborate  walk  of  Loudoun 
men  and  women  of  Colonial  and  post-Revolutionary  times  is 
traceable  almost  solely  to  the  costuming  of  that  period.  How 
could  ladies  dance  anything  but  the  stately  minuet,  when 
their  heads  were  veritable  pyramids  of  pasted  hair  surmounted 
by  turbans,  when  their  jeweled  stomachers  and  tight- laced 
stays  held  their  bodies  as  tightly  as  would  a  vise,  when  their 
high-heeled  shoes  were  as  unyielding  as  if  made  of  wood,  and 
their  trails  of  taffeta,  often  as  much  as  fifteen  yards  long,  and 
great  feathered  head-dresses  compelled  them  to  turn  round  as 
slowly  as  strutting  peacocks?  How  could  the  men,  with  their 
buckram-stiffened  coat-shirts,  execute  any  other  dance,  when 
their  elaborate  powdered  wigs  compelled  them  to  carry  their 
hats  under  their  arms,  and  their  swords  concurrently  re- 
quired dexterous  management  for  the  avoidance  of  tripping 
and  mortifying  falls? 

Children  were  laced  in  stays  and  made  to  wear  chin  sup- 
ports, gaps,  and  pads  so  as  to  give  them  the  graceful  carriage 
necessary  to  the  wearing  of  all  this  weight  of  stiff  and  ela- 
borate costume,  which  was  all  of  a  piece  with  the  character 
of  the  assemblies  and  other  evening  entertainments,  the 
games  of  cards — basset,  loo,  piquet,  and  whist — with  the 
dancing,  the  ceremonious  public  life  of  nearly  every  class  of 
society,  with  even  the  elaborate  funeral  ceremonies,  and  the 
sedulousness  with  which  * 'persons  of  quality"  thought  it 
incumbent  upon  themselves  to  maintain  the  distinctions  of 
rank  as  symbolized  in  costume. 

The  tie-wig,  bob-wig,  bag-wig,  night-cap-wig,  and  riding- 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  121 

wig  were  worn  by  the  gentleman  of  quality  as  occasion 
required.  At  times  he  wore,  also,  a  small  three-cornered 
cocked  hat,  felt  or  beaver,  elaborately  laced  with  gold  or  sil- 
ver galloon.  If  he  walked,  as  to  church  or  court,  he  carried, 
in  addition  to  his  sword,  a  gold  or  ivory-headed  cane,  at  least 
five  feet  long,  and  wore  square-toed,  "  low-quartered  "  shoes 
with  paste  or  silver  buckles.  His  stockings,  no  matter  what 
the  material,  were  tightly  stretched  over  his  calves  and  care- 
fully gartered  at  the  knee.  If  he  rode,  he  wore  boots  instead 
of  shoes  and  carried  a  stout  riding  whip.  About  his  neck 
was  a  white  cravat  of  great  amplitude,  with  abundant  hanging 
ends  of  lace.  His  waist-coat  was  made  with  great  flaps  ex- 
tending nearly  down  to  the  knee  and  bound  with  gold  or 
silver  lace.  His  coat,  of  cloth  or  velvet,  might  be  of  any 
color,  but  was  sure  to  be  elaborately  made,  with  flap-pockets, 
and  great  hanging  cuffs,  from  beneath  which  appeared  the 
gentleman's  indispensable  lace  ruffles.  His  knee-breeches 
were  of  black  satin,  red  plush,  or  blue  cloth,  according  to  his 
fancy.  They  were  plainly  made  and  fitted  tightly,  buckling 
at  the  knee.  At  home,  a  black  velvet  skull-cap  sometimes 
usurped  the  place  of  the  wig  and  a  damask  dressing-gown 
lined  with  silk  supplanted  the  coat,  the  feet  being  made  easy 
in  fancy  morocco  slippers.  Judges  on  the  bench  often  wore 
robes  of  scarlet  faced  with  black  velvet  in  winter,  and  black 
silk  gowns  in  summer. 

The  substantial  planter  and  burgher  dressed  well  but  were  not 
so  particular  about  their  wigs,  of  which  they  probably  owned  no 
more  than  one,  kept  for  visiting  and  for  Sabbath  use.  They 
usually  yielded  to  the  customof  shaving  their  heads,  however, 
and  wore  white  linen  caps  under  their  hats.  During  the 
Revoluntary  War  wigs  were  scare  and  costly,  linen  was 
almost  unobtainable  and  the  practice  of  shaving  heads  accord- 
ingly fell  rapidly  into  desuetude.  Sometimes  the  burgher's 
hat  was  of  wool  or  felt,  with  a  low  crown  and  broad  brim, 
turned  up  and  cocked.  About  his  neck  he  wore  a  white  linen 
stock,  fastening  with  a  buckle  at  the  back.  His  coat  was  of 
cloth,  broad-backed,   with  flap-pockets,   and  his  waist-coat, 

45—9 


122  HISTORY  OF 

of  the  same  stuff,  extended  to  his  knees.  He  wore  short 
breeches  with  brass  or  silver  knee-buckles,  red  or  blue  gar- 
ters, and  rather  stout,  coarse  leather  shoes,  strapped  over  the 
quarter.  He  wore  no  sword,  but  often  carried  a  staff,  and 
knew  how  to  use  it  to  advantage. 

Mechanics,  laborers  and  servants  wore  leather-breeches  and 
aprons,  sagathy  coats,  osnaburg  shirts  and  hair-shag  jackets, 
coarse  shoes,  and  worsted  or  jean  stockings,  knit  at  home. 

The  dress  of  the  women  of  these  classes  was  shabbier  still, 
their  costumes,  for  the  most  part,  comprising  stamped  cotton 
and  white  dimity  gowns,  coarse  shift  (osnaburg),  country 
cloth,  and  black  quilted  petticoats.  In  the  backwoods  and  the 
primitive  (German  settlements  the  women  all  wore  the  short 
gowns  and  petticoats,  also  tight-fitting  calico  caps.  In  sum- 
mer, when  employed  in  the  fields,  they  wore  only  a  linen  shift 
and  a  petticoat  of  home-made  linsey.  All  their  clothing,  in 
fact,  was  home-made. 

The  ladies  of  quality,  however,  as  has  been  intimated, 
dressed  extravagantly,  frizzed,  rouged,  wore  trains,  and 
acted  as  fashionable  women  have  done  from  the  immemorial 
beginning  of  things. 

The  pioneers  dressed  universally  in  the  hunting  shirt  or 
blouse,  sometimes  fringed  and  decorated,  and  perhaps  the  most 
convenient  frock  ever  conceived.  It  fit  loosely,  was  open  in 
front,  reached  almost  to  the  knees,  and  had  large  sleeves,  and 
a  cape  for  the  protection  of  the  shoulders  in  bad  weather.  In 
the  ample  bosom  of  this  shirt  the  hunter  carried  his  bread 
and  meat,  the  tow  with  which  to  wipe  out  the  barrel  of  his 
rifle,  and  other  small  requisites.  To  his  belt,  tied  or  buckled 
behind,  he  suspended  his  mittens,  bullet-pouch,  tomahawk,  and 
knife  and  sheath.  His  hunting-shirt  was  made  of  dressed  deer- 
skin— very  uncomfortable  in  wet  weather— or  of  linsey,  when 
it  was  to  be  had.  The  pioneer  dressed  his  lower  body  in 
drawers  and  leathern  cloth  leggins,  and  his  feet  in  moccasins; 
a  coon-skin  cap  completing  the  attire. 

His  wife  wore  a  linsey  petticoat,  home-spun  and  home-made, 
and  a  short  gown  of  linsey  or  "callimanco,"  when  that  ma- 
terial could  be  obtained.     She  wore  no  covering  for  the  feet 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  123 

in  ordinary  weather,  and  moccasins,  coarse,  "country-made" 
shoes,  or  "shoe-packs"  during  more  rigorous  seasons.  To 
complete  the  picture  Kercheval,  the  historian  olF  the  Shenan- 
doah Valley,  is  here  quoted:  "The  coats  and  bed-gowns  of  the 
women,  as  well  as  the  hunting-shirts  of  the  men,  were  hung  in 
full  display  on  wooden  pegs  around  the  walls  of  their  cabins, 
so  that  while  they  answered  in  some  degree  the  purpose  of 
paper-hangings  or  tapestry,  they  announced  to  the  stranger 
as  well  as  the  neighbor  the  wealth  or  poverty  of  the  family  in 
the  articles  of  clothing." 

It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  desultory  sketch  furnished  above 
will  not  be  found  uninteresting  despite  its  imperfections. 
Many  details  have  been  omitted  or  neglected,  but  enough 
has  been  written  to  illustrate  in  a  general  way  the  qualities 
for  which  our  ancestors  were  most  distinguished,  for  which 
their  characters  have  excited  most  comment  and  perhaps 
deserved  most  praise. 

As  a  whole,  they  were  a  generous,  large-hearted,  liberal- 
minded  people,  and  their  faults  were  far  fewer  than  their 
virtues.  The  yeomanry,  in  their  own  rude,  rough-and-ready 
manner,  reflected  the  same  sort  of  personal  independence  of 
character  and  proud  sense  of  individuality  as  the  social 
aristocracy. 

FRENCH  AND  INDIAN  WAR. 

Little  can  be  learned  of  Loudoun's  participation  in  the  last 
great  French  and  Indian  War  (1754-1763).  It  had  its  begin- 
ning three  years  prior  to  her  admission  into  the  sisterhood  of 
Virginia  counties,  and  the  services  she  must  have  rendered 
during  that  period  are,  of  course,  accredited  to  Fairfax,  of 
which  county  she  was  then  a  part.  The  few  existing  or  avail- 
able records  of  the  remaining  six  years  of  warfare,  as  of  the 
entire  period,  are  imperfect  and  unlocalized  and  would  baffle 
the  most  experienced  and  persevering  compiler. 

The  only  deductions  that  have  seemed  at  all  noteworthy  are 
here  presented: 

The   General   Assembly  of  Virginia,  on  April  14,    1757, 


124  HISTORY  OF 

passed  an  act  providing  for  the  appointment  of  a  committee 
to  direct  the  pay  of  the  officers  and  soldiers  then  in  the  pay 
of  the  Colony,  of  "the  rangers  formerly  employed,  and  for 
the  expense  of  building  a  fort  in  the  Cherokee  country,"  for 
the  pay  of  the  militia  that  had  ''been  drawn  out  into  actual 
service,  and  also  for  provisions  for  the  said  soldiers,  rangers, 
and  militia.     .     .     ." 

In  the  following  schedule  are  given  the  names  of  Loudoun 

payees  and  the  amount  received  by  each: 

£    s.    d. 

To  Captain  Nicholas  Minor 1     00    00 

^neas  Campbell,  lieutenant 7      6 

Francis  Wilks 1     17 

James  Willock 1     15 

John  Owsley  and  William  Stephens,  15s.  each 1     10 

Robert  Thomas 10 

John  Moss,  Jr 4 

John  Thomas,  for  provisions 5 

John  Moss,  for  provisions 2      8 

William  Ross,  for  provisions 2 

7     13       2 

By  a  later  act  of  the  same  body  commissioners  were  em- 
powered "to  examine,  state,  and  settle  the  accounts  of  such 
pay,  provisions,  arms,  etc. , "  of  the  six  counties  from  which 
they  were  appointed,  "and  all  arrears  whatsoever  relating  to 
the  militia." 

The  following  list  of  Loudoun  beneficiaries,  with  the 
amounts  opposite,  is  reproduced  in  the  identical  form  in  which 

it  was  then  submitted: 

£  s.     d. 

"1757.  To  Robert  Adams,  assignee  of  Stephen  Thatcher,  for 

his  pay, 5  12      6 

Do.  do  of  Thomas  Bond,  fordo., 4  10 

Thomas  Gore,  for  a  rifle  gun  impressed, 4  10 

Stephen  Kmorie,  for  dressing  guns  for  militia, 13 

James  demons,  for  a  gun  impressed, 4  10 

1763.    Captain  Moss,  for  60  days'  paj'  at  6s., 18 

Lieutenant  Gore,  for  do.  at  3s.,  6d., 10  10" 

REPRESENTATION. 

Colonial  Assemblies. — General  Assembly  of  1758-61,  Fran- 
cis Lightfoot  Lee  and  James  Hamilton;  General  Assembly  of 
1761-65,  Francis  lyightfoot  Lee  and  James  Hamilton;  Gen- 
eral Assembly  of  October,  I765,  Francis  Lightfoot  Lee  and 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  125 

James  Hamilton;  General  Assembly  of  1 766-' 68,  Francis 
lyightfoot  Lee  and  James  Hamilton;  General  Assembly  of 
May,  1769,  Francis  Peyton  and  James  Hamilton;  General 
Assembly  of  1 769-' 71,  Francis  Peyton  and  James  Hamilton 
(the  latter  vacated  his  seat  during  the  session  of  May  21, 
1770,  to  accept  the  ofl&ce  of  coroner.  He  was  succeeded  by 
Josiah  Clapham);  General  Assembly  of  1772-74,  Thomas 
Mason  and  Francis  Peyton;  General  Assembly  of  1775-76, 
Josiah  Clapham  and  Francis  Peyton. 

State  Conventions. 

Below  will  be  found  a  compendium  of  Virginia  conventions, 
with  the  names  of  the  delegates  returned  by  Loudoun  County. 
Few,  if  any,  counties  of  Virginia  have  had  an  abler  or  more 
influential  representation  in  the  various  State  conventions. 
From  the  meeting  of  the  first  to  the  adjournment  of  the  last 
Loudoun  has  been  represented  by  fifteen  of  her  wisest  and 
most  prominent  citizens. 

Convention  of  777^.— Met  August  1,  1774.  Adjourned 
August  6,  1774.  Loudoun  delegates:  Francis  Peyton  and 
Thomas  Mason. 

Convention  of  March  20,  1775. — Met  at  Richmond,  Monday, 
March20, 1775-  Adjourned  March27, 1775.  Loudoundele- 
gates:  Francis  Peyton  and  Josiah  Clapham. 

Convention  of  fuly  17,  1775. — Met  at  Richmond,  July  17, 
1775.  Adjourned  August  26,  1775.  Loudoun  delegates: 
Francis  Peyton  and  Josiah  Clapham. 

Convention  of  December  z,  1775. — Met  at  Richmond,  Decem- 
ber 1,  1775.  Adjourned  January  20,  1776.  Loudoun  dele- 
gates: Francis  Peyton  and  Josiah  Clapham. 

Convention  of  1776. — This  convention  met  in  the  city  of 
Williamsburg,   on  Monday,  May  6,  1776,  and  "framed  the 


126  HISTORY  OF 

first  written  constitution  of  a  free  State  in  the  annals  of  the 
world."  Adjourned  July  5,  1776.  Loudoun  delegates: 
Francis  Peyton  and  Josiah  Clapham. 

Previous  conventions  did  not  frame  constitutions,  but  they 
directed  the  affairs  of  the  colony,  and,  in  a  measure,  con- 
trolled the  destinies  of  her  people.  Like  the  convention  of 
1776,  they  were  instead  revolutionary  bodies. 

Convention  of  iy88. — This  convention  met  in  the  State 
House  in  the  city  of  Richmond,  June  2,  I788,  to  ratify  or  re- 
ject the  Constitution  which  had  been  recommended  to  the 
States  by  the  Federal  Convention  on  the  17th  of  September, 
1787,  at  Philadelphia.  Adjourned  sine  die  June  27,  1788. 
Loudoun  delegates:  Stephen  T.  Mason  and  Levin  Powell. 

Convention  of  i82g- JO. — Assembled  in  Richmond  on  the  5th 
day  of  October,  I829.  Tenth  District  (Loudoun  and  Fairfax) 
delegates:  James  Monroe,  Charles  Fenton  Mercer,  William 
H.  Fitzhugh,  and  Richard  H.  Henderson. 

Convention  of  18^0-^1. — Met  at  the  Capitol  in  the  city  of 
Richmond,  on  Monday,  October  14,  I85O.  Adjourned  sine 
die,  August  1,  I85I.  District  of  Loudoun  delegates:  John 
Janney,  John  A.  Carter,  and  Robert  J.  T.  White. 

Convention  of  1 86 1. — Met  February  I3,  I86I.  Adjourned 
sine  die,  December  6,  I86I.  Loudoun  delegates:  John  Janney 
and  John  A.  Carter.  The  former  was  elected  President  of 
the  Convention.  Both  voted  against  the  ordinance  of  seces- 
sion, April  17,  1861.  Mr.  Janney's  resignation  as  President 
of  the  Convention  was  tendered  on  November  14,  I86I. 

Convention  of  1864. — (Restored  Government  of  Virginia.) 
Met  February  13,  I864.  Adjourned  ^z;?^  flfzV,  April  11,  I864. 
Loudoun  delegates:  John  J.  Henshaw,  James  M.  Downey, 
and  E.  R.  Gover. 

Convention  of  i86y-68. — Met  at  Richmond,  Tuesday,  De- 
cember 3,  1867.  Adjourned  April  17,  I868.  Loudoun  dele- 
gates: Norborne  Berkeley  and  George  E.  Plaster. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  127 

Convention  of  I  go  I- 02. — Met  June  12,  1901.  Adjourned  sine 
die,  June  26,  1902.  lyoudoun  and  Fauquier  district  delegates: 
Heary  Fairfax  and  Albert  Fletcher. 

THE  REVOLUTION. 

Loudoun^  s  Loyalty. 

The  story  of  the  Revolution  and  the  causes  which  led  to 
that  great  event  are  properly  treated  in  a  more  general  history 
than  this  purports  to  be.  If,  in  the  few  succeeding  pages,  it 
can  be  shown  that  Loudoun  County  was  most  forward  in  re- 
sisting the  arbitrary  aggressions  of  the  British  government 
and  that  the  valor  and  patriotism  she  evinced  during  the 
Revolution  was  equal  to  that  of  her  sister  counties,  who  had 
suffered  with  her  under  the  yoke  of  British  oppression,  then 
the  primary  object  of  this  sketch  will  be  accomplished.  Her 
blood  and  treasure  were  freely  dedicated  to  the  cause  of 
liberty,  and,  having  once  entered  the  Revolution,  she  deter- 
mined to  persevere  in  the  struggle  until  every  resource  was 
exhausted. 

Armed  with  flint-lock  muskets  of  small  bore  and  with  long- 
barreled  rifles  which  they  loaded  from  the  muzzle  by  the  use 
of  the  ramrod;  equipped  with  powder  horn,  charges  made  of 
cane  for  loading,  bullet  molds  and  wadding,  but  bravely 
arrayed  in  homespun  of  blue,  and  belted  with  cutlass  and 
broadsword  by  the  side,  cockade  on  the  hat  and  courage  in 
the  heart,  her  revolutionary  soldiers  marched  to  the  music  of 
fife  and  drum  into  battle  for  freedom  against  the  power  and 
might  of  the  mother  country. 

Resolutions  of  Loudoun  County. 

In  1877,  the  following  article  appeared  in  a  Leesburg 
newspaper  under  the  caption  "Loudoun  County  a  Hundred 
Years  Ago:" 

"Major  B.  P.  Nolan,  grandson  of  Burr  Powell,  has  just  put  us  in  pos- 
session of  a  verified  copy  of  the  proceedings  of  a  public  meeting  held  at 


128  HISTORY  OF 

Leesburg,  Loudoun  County,  on  the  14th  of  June,  1774,  nearly  one  hun- 
dred and  five  years  ago.  It  is  interesting,  not  merely  for  its  antiquity, 
but  as  showing  the  spirit  of  independence  that  animated  the  breasts 
of  our  liberty-loving  countrymen  two  years  before  the  Declaration  of 
American  Independence  in  1776.  The  original  document  was  found 
among  the  papers  of  Col.  Leven  Powell,  at  one  time  member  of  Congress 
from  this  district,  who  died  in  1810.  His  son,  Burr  Powell,  forwarded 
a  copy  to  R.  H.  Lee,  Esq.,  who  in  1826  was  about  to  publish  a  second 
edition  of  his  'Memoirs  of  the  Life  of  R.  H.  Lee,' of  Revolutionary 
fame." 

The  proceedings  or  resolutions  follow: 

"PuBWC  Meeting  in  Loudoun  in  1774.  " 

"At  a  meeting  of  the  Freeholders  and  other  inhabitants  of  the  County 
of  Loudoun,  in  the  Colony  of  Virginia,  held  at  the  Court-House  in  Lees- 
burg  the  14th  of  June,  1774,  F.  Peyton,  Esq.,  in  the  Chair,  to  consider 
the  most  effectual  method  to  preserve  the  rights  and  liberties  of  North 
America,  and  relieve  our  brethren  of  Boston,  suffering  under  the  most 
oppressive  and  tyrannical  Act  of  the  British  Parliament,  made  in  the 
14th  year  of  his  present  Majesty's  reign,  whereby  their  Harbor  is 
blocked  up,  their  commerce  totally  obstructed,  their  property  rendered 
useless — 

''Resolved,  That  we  will  always  cheerfully  submit  to  such  prerogatives 
as  his  Majesty  has  a  right,  by  law,  to  exercise,  as  Sovereign  of  the 
British  Dominions,  and  to  no  others. 

''Resolved,  That  it  is  beneath  the  dignity  of  freemen  to  submit  to  any 
tax  not  imposed  on  them  in  the  usual  manner,  by  representatives  of  their 
own  choosing. 

"Resolved,  That  the  Act  of  the  British  Parliament,  above  mentioned, 
is  utterly  repugnant  to  the  fundamental  laws  of  justice,  in  punishing 
persons  without  even  the  form  of  a  trial;  but  a  despotic  exertion  of  un- 
constitutional power  designedly  calculated  to  enslave  a  free  and  loyal 
people. 

"Resolved,  That  the  enforcing  the  execution  of  the  said  Act  of  Parlia- 
ment by  a  military  power,  must  have  a  necessary  tendency  to  raise  a 
civil  war,  and  that  we  will,  with  our  lives  and  fortunes,  assist  and  sup- 
port our  suffering  brethren,  of  Boston,  and  every  part  of  North  America 
that  may  fall  under  the  immediate  hand  of  oppression,  until  a  redress 
of  all  our  grievances  shall  be  procured,  and  our  common  liberties  estab- 
lished on  a  permanent  foundation. 

"Resolved,  That  the  East  India  Company,  by  exporting  their  tea  from 
England  to  America,  whilst  subject  to  a  tax  imposed  thereon  by  the 
British  Parliament,  have  evidently  designed  to  fix  on  the  Americans 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA. 


129 


those  chains  forged  for  them  by  a  venal  ministry,  and  have  thereby 
rendered  themselves  odious  and  detestable  throughout  all  America.  It 
is,  therefore,  the  unanimous  opinion  of  this  meeting  not  to  purchase  any 
tea  or  other  East  India  commodity  whatever,  imported  after  the  first  of 
this  Month. 

^^Resolvedy  That  we  will  have  no  commercial  intercourse  with  Great 
Britain  until  the  above  mentioned  act  of  Parliament  shall  be  totally 
repealed,  and  the  right  of  regulating  the  internal  policy  of  North 
America  by  a  British  Parliament  shall  be  absolutely  and  positively 
given  up. 

^'Resolved,  That  Thompson  Mason  and  Francis  Peyton,  Esqs.,  be  ap- 
pointed to  represent  the  County  at  a  general  meeting  to  be  held  at 
Williamsburg  on  the  1st  day  of  August  next,  to  take  the  sense  of  this 
Colony  at  large  on  the  subject  of  the  preceding  resolves,  and  that  they, 
together  with  Leven  Powell,  William  BUzey,  John  Thornton,  George 
Johnston,  and  Samuel  Levi,  or  any  three  of  them,  be  a  committee  to 
correspond  with  the  several  committees  appointed  for  this  purpose. 
"  Signed  by — 

'•John  Morton, 

Thomas  Ray, 

Thomas  Drake, 

William  Booram, 

Benj.  Isaac  Humphrey, 

Samuel  Mills, 

Joshua  Singleton, 

Jonathan  Drake, 


Matthew  Rust, 
Barney  Sims, 
John  Sims, 
Samuel  Butler, 
Thomas  Chinn, 
Appollos  Cooper, 
Lina  Hanconk, 
John  McVicker, 
Simon  Triplett, 
John  Wildey, 
Joseph  Bay  ley, 
Isaac  Sanders, 
Thos.  Williams, 
John  Williams, 
William  Finnekin, 
Richard  Hanson, 
John  Dunker, 
Thomas  Williams, 


James  Nolan, 
Samuel  Peugh, 
William  Nomail, 
Thomas  Luttrell, 
James  Brair, 
Poins  Awsley, 
John  Kendrick, 
Edward  O'Neal, 
Francis  Triplett, 
Joseph  Combs, 
John  Peyton  Harrison, 
Robert  Combs, 
Stephen  Combs, 
Samuel  Henderson, 
Benjamin  Overfield, 
Adam  Sangster, 
Bazzell  Roads, 
James  Graydey, 
Thomas  Awsley, 
John  Reardon, 
Henry  Awsley, 
Edward  Miller, 
Richard  Hirst, 
James  Davis, 
Jasper  Grant." 


130  HISTORY  OF 

Revolutionary  Committees, 
The  County  Co;ntnittee  of  lyoudoun  for  1 774-' 75  was  com- 
posed of  the  following  members: 

Francis  Peyton,  Ivcven  Powell, 

Josias  Clapham,  William  Smith, 

Thomas  Lewis,  Robert  Jamison, 

Anthony  Russell,  Hardage  Lane, 

John  Thomas,  John  Lewis, 

George  Johnston,  James  Lane, 

Thomas  Shore,  George  Johnston, 
Jacob  Reed,  Clerk. 

The  appended  findings  of  this  as  well  as  a  later  committee 
exemplify  the  work  of  these  Revolutionary  bodies. 

"At  a  meeting  of  the  Committee  of  Loudoun  County,  held  at  Lees- 
burg  on  Friday,  May  26,  1775.     .     •     • 

"The  Committee,  taking  into  consideration  the  conduct  of  the  Gover- 
nour  relative  to  the  powder  which  was,  by  his  express  orders,  taken 
secretly  out  of  thepublick  Magazine  belonging  to  this  Colony,  in  the  night 
of  the  twentieth  ult.,  and  carried  on  board  the  Magdaline  schooner. 

''Resolved,  nemine contra  dicenie,  That  his  Lordship,  by  this  and  other 
parts  of  his  conduct  which  have  lately  transpired,  has  not  only  forfeited 
the  confidence  of  the  good  people  of  this  Colony,  but  that  he  may  be 
justly  esteemed  an  enemy  to  America;  and  that  as  well  his  excuse  pub- 
lished in  his  Proclamation  of  the  fourth  instant,  as  his  verbal  answer  to 
the  address  presented  him  on  that  occasion  by  the  city  of  Williams- 
burgh,  are  unsatisfactory  and  evasive,  and  reflect,  in  our  opinion,  great 
dishonour  on  the  General  Assembly  and  inhabitants  of  this  Colony,  as 
from  the  latter  a  suspicion  may  be  easily  deduced,  that  the  Representa- 
tives of  the  people  are  not  competent  judges  of  the  place  wherein  arms 
and  ammunition,  intended  for  the  defense  of  the  Colony,  may  be  safely 
lodged,  and  that  the  inhabitants  (unlike  other  subjects)  can  not,  in  pru- 
dence, be  trusted  with  the  means  necessary  for  their  protection  from 
insurrection,  or  even  evasion;  so  in  the  former  a  very  heavy  charge  is 
exhibited  against  the  best  men  among  us,  of  seducing  their  fellow-sub- 
jects from  their  duty  and  allegiance;  a  charge,  we  are  confident,  not 
founded  in  reality,  and  which,  we  believe,  is  construed  out  of  the  dis- 
charge of  that  duty  which  every  good  man  is  under,  to  point  out  to  his 
weaker  countrymen,  in  the  dayof  publick  trial,  the  part  they  should  act, 
and  explain,  on  constitutional  principles,  the  nature  of  their  allegiance, 
the  ground  of  which  we  fervently  pray  may  never  be  removed,  whose 
force  we  desire  may  never  with  reason  be  relaxed,  but  yet  may  be  sub- 
servient to  considerations  of  superior  regard. 


LOUDOUN   COUNTY,  VA.  I3I 

"The  Committee  being  informed  by  some  of  the  ofiBcers  who  com- 
manded the  Troops  of  this  County  i;hat  marched  on  the  above  occasion, 
that  the  reason  of  their  marching  no  farther  than  Fredericksburgh  was, 
their  having  received  repeated  requests  from  the  Honourable  Peyton 
Randolph,  Esq.,  to  return  home,  assuring  them  that  the  peaceable  citi- 
zens of  Williamsburgh  were  under  no  apprehensions  of  danger,  either 
in  their  persons  or  properties;  that  the  publick  treasury  and  records  were 
perfectly  safe,  and  that  there  was  no  necessity  for  their  proceeding  any 
farther;  three  of  the  other  Delegates  appointed  to  the  Continental  Con- 
gress, the  only  civil  power  we  know  of  in  this  great  struggle  for  liberty, 
being  of  the  same  opinion. 

''''Resolved,  netnine  contra  dicente^  That  under  such  circumstances  we 
approve  the  conduct  of  the  said  Ofl&cers  and  Troops, 

''''Resolved,  netnine  contra  dicente.  That  we  cordially  approve  the  con- 
duct of  our  countrymen.  Captain  Patrick  Henry,  and  the  other  volun- 
teers of  Hanover  County,  who  marched  under  him,  in  making  reprisals 
on  the  King's  property  for  the  trespass  committed  as  aforesaid,  and  that 
we  are  determined  to  hazard  all  the  blessings  of  this  life  rather  than 
suffer  the  smallest  injury  offered  to  their  persons  or  estates,  on  this 
account,  to  pass  unrewarded  with  its  equal  punishment. 

'''■Resolved,  nemine  contra  dicente.  That  it  be  recommended  to  the 
Representatives  of  this  County,  as  the  opinion  of  this  Committee,  that 
they  by  no  means  agree  to  the  reprisals,  taken  as  aforesaid,  being 
returned. 

'■^Ordered,  That  the  clerk  transmit  immediately  a  copy  of  the  preced- 
ing resolves  to  the  Printers  of  the  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania  gazettes, 
to  be  published. 

"By  order  of  the  Committee. 

"George  Johnston,  Clerk.'' 

In  session  in  Loudoun,  May  14,  1776: 

"Richard  Morlan  being  summoned  to  appear  before  this  Committee, 
for  speaking  words  inimical  to  the  liberties  of  America,  and  tending  to 
discourage  a  Minute-man  from  returning  to  his  duty;  and  also  publickly 
declaring  he  would  not  muster,  and  if  fined  would  oppose  the  collection 
of  the  fine  with  his  gun:  The  charge  being  proved  against  him,  and  he 
heard  in  his  defense,  the  Committee  think  proper  to  hold  the  said 
Morlan  up  to  the  publick  as  an  enemy  to  their  rights  and  liberties;  and 
have  ordered  that  this  resolution  be  published  in  the  Virginia  Gazette, 

"Christopher  Greenup,  Clerk.'* 

Soldiery. 

Loudoun,  at  the  time  of  the  Revolution,  was  one  of  the 
most  densely  populated  counties  in  the  State.  Her  militia, 
according  to  the  returns  of  I78O  and  1781,  numbered  1,746, 


132  HISTORY  OF 

which  number  was  far  in  excess  of  that  reported  by  any  other 
Virginia  county. 

It  is  probable  that  a  few  Loudoun  patriots  served  in  Captain 
Daniel  Morgan's  celebrated  "Company  of  Virgina  Riflemen,", 
thus  described  by  a  line  ofiicer  of  the  Continental  Army: 
"They  are  remarkably  stout  and  hardy  men;  many  of  them 
exceeding  six  feet  in  height.  They  are  dressed  in  white 
frocks,  or  rifle  shirts,  and  round  hats.  These  men  are  re- 
markable for  the  accuracy  of  their  aim;  striking  a  mark  with 
great  certainty  at  two  hundred  yards  distance.  At  a  review, 
a  company  of  them,  while  on  a  quick  advance,  fired  their 
balls  into  objects  of  seven  inches  diameter  at  the  distance  of 
two  hundred  and  fifty  yards.  They  are  now  stationed  on  our 
lines,  and  their  shot  have  frequently  proved  fatal  to  British 
officers  and  soldiers,  who  expose  themselves  to  view  even  at 
more  than  double  the  distance  of  common  musket  shot." 

The  Germans  of  Loudoun  were  intensely  loyal  to  the  cause 
of  freedom,  many  serving  in  Armand's  Legion,  recruited  by 
authority  of  Congress  during  the  summer  of  1777,  and  com- 
posed of  men  who  could  not  speak  English. 

Quaker  Non- Participation. 

During  the  period  preceding  the  Revolution,  important 
offices  had  been  bestowed  on  the  Friends  or  Quakers  of 
Loudoun  and  they  exercised  a  decided  influence  in  the  govern- 
ment of  the  County.  They,  however,  withdrew  participation 
in  public  affairs  on  the  approach  of  war;  and,  to  the  deter- 
mination of  the  American  patriots  to  throw  off  the  yoke  of 
British  tyranny,  they  opposed  their  principles  of  non-resistance, 
not  only  refusing  to  perform  military  duty,  but  also  to  pay 
the  taxes  levied  on  them,  as  on  all  other  citizens,  for  the 
prosecution  of  the  War  of  Independence. 

This  non-conformity  to  the  military  laws  of  the  State  from 
conscientious  motives,  brought  them  into  difficulty,  as  will  be 
seen  in  the  annexed  extract  from  Kercheval's  History  of  the 
Shenandoah  Valley: 

"At  the  beginning  of  the  war,  attempts  were  made  to  compel  them  to 
bear  arms  and  serve  in  the  militia;  but  it  was  soon  found  unavailing. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY, VA.  133 

They  would  not  perform  any  military  duty  required  of  them,  not  even 
the  scourge  would  compel  them  to  submit  to  discipline.  The  practice  of 
coercion  was  therefore  abandoned,  and  the  legislature  enacted  a  law  to 
levy  a  tax  upon  their  property,  to  hire  substitutes  to  perform  militia  duty 
in  their  stead.  This,  with  other  taxes,  bore  peculiarly  heavy  upon  them. 
Their  personal  property  was  sold  under  the  hammer  to  raise  the  public 
demands;  and  before  the  war  was  over,  many  of  them  were  reduced  to 
great  distress  in  their  pecuniary  circumstances. 

"This  selling  of  Quakers'  property  afforded  great  opportunity  for  de- 
signing individuals  to  make  profitable  speculations.  They  continued  to 
refuse  to  pay  taxes  for  several  years  after  the  war,  holding  it  unlawful 
to  contribute  their  money  towards  discharging  the  war  debt.  THis  being 
at  length  adjusted,  no  part  of  our  citizens  pay  their  public  demands 
with  more  punctuality  (except  their  muster  fines,  which  they  still  refuse 
to  pay)." 

Loudoun's  Revolutionary  Hero, 

John  Champe,  the  tall  and  saturnine  sergeant-major  of  Lee*s 
celebrated  partisan  legion,  was  a  resident  of  I^oudoun  County. 
Readers  of  Lee's  "Memoirs  of  the  War"  will  recall  the  account 
of  Champe' s  pretended  desertion  from  the  Continental  armies. 
This  perilous  adventure  was  undertaken  for  the  threefold 
purpose  of  capturing  the  traitor  Arnold,  saving  the  life  of  the 
unfortunate  Andre,  and  establishing  the  innocence  of  General 
Gates,  who  had  been  charged  with  complicity  in  Arnold's 
nefarious  intrigue.  His  investigations  secured  the  complete 
vindication  of  Gates;  but,  failing  in  his  other  attempts,  he 
drifted  with  the  Red  Coats  to  North  Carolina,  where  he  de- 
serted their  ranks  and  rejoined  the  American  forces  under 
General  Greene. 

That  ofi&cer  provided  him  with  a  good  horse  and  money  for 
his  journey,  and  sent  him  to  General  Washington.  The 
commander-in-chief  "  munificently  anticipated  every  desire 
of  the  sergeant,  and  presented  him  with  a  discharge  from  fur- 
ther service,  lest  he  might,  in  the  vicissitudes  of  war,  fall  into 
the  enemy's  hands;  when,  if  recognized,  he  was  sure  to  die 
on  a  gibbet."  His  connection  with  the  army  thus  abruptly, 
though  honorably,  severed,  with  no  little  regret  we  are  to  sup- 
pose, he  straightway  repaired  to  his  home  near  Leesburg. 

In  after  years,  when  General  Washington  was  called   by 


134  HISTORY  OF 

President  Adams  to  the  command  of  the  army  organized  to 
defend  the  country  from  French  hostility,  he  inquired  for 
Champe,  with  the  avowed  purpose  of  placing  him  at  the  head 
of  a  company  of  infantry.  Lieutenant-Colonel  Lee,  through 
whom  the  inquiry  had  been  made,  dispatched  a  courier  to 
Loudoun  County  in  search  of  Champe.  There  he  learned 
that  the  intrepid  soldier  and  daring  adventurer  had  removed 
to  Kentucky,  where  he  soon  afterward  died. 

Some  interesting  anecdotes  concerning  Champe  are  related 
in  a  portion  of  Captain  Cameron's  private  journal,  published 
in  the  British  United  Service  Journal.  Champe  was  assigned 
to  his  company,  a  part  of  Arnold's  British  legion,  upon  his 
arrival  in  New  York. 

Army  Recommendations, 

The  following  list  of  militia  officers  were  "recommended 
by  the  gentlemen  justices  of  the  county  Court  for  Loudoun 
County,  Virginia,  to  the  Governor  for  appointments  from 
March,  1778,  to  December,  1782:" 

*"March,  1778:  James  Whaley,  Jr.,  second  lieutenant;  William  Car- 
nan,  ensign;  Daniel  Ivcwis,  second  lieutenant;  Josias  Miles  and  Thomas 
King,  lieutenants;  Hugh  Douglass,  ensign;  Isaac  Vandevanter,  lieuten- 
ant; John  Dodd,  ensign.  May,  1778:  George  Summers  and  Charles  G. 
Eskridge,  colonels;  William  McClellan,  Robert  McClain  and  John 
Henry,  captains;  Samuel  Cox,  major;  Frans  Russell,  James  Beavers, 
Scarlet  Burkley,  Moses  Thomas,  Henry  Farnsworth,  John  Russell,  Gus- 
tavus  Elgin,  John  Miller,  Samuel  Butcher,  Joshua  Botts,  John  Williams, 
George  Tyler,  Nathaniel  Adams  and  George  Mason,  lieutenants;  Isaac 
Grant,  John  Thatcher,  William  Elliott,  Richard  Shore  and  Peter  Ben- 
ham,  ensigns.  1778,  August:  Thomas  Marks,  William  Robison,  Joseph 
Butler  and  John  Linton,  lieutenants;  Joseph  Wildman  and  George 
Asbury,  ensigns.  1778,  September:  Francis  Russell,  lieutenant,  and 
George  Shrieve,  ensign.  1779,  May:  Joseph  Wildman,  lieutenant,  and 
Francis  Elgin,  Jr.,  ensign.  1779,  June  14:  George  Kilgour,  lieutenant, 
and  Jacob  Caton,  ensign.  1779,  July  12:  John  Debell,  lieutenant,  and 
William  Hutchison,  ensign.  1779,  October  11:  Francis  Russell, 
captain.  1779,  November  8:  James  Cleveland,  captain;  Thomas  Millan, 
ensign.  1780,  February  14:  Thomas  Williams,  ensign.  1780,  March: 
John    Benham,   ensign.     1780,    June:     Wethers    Smith    and    William 

♦Abstract  from  Court  Order  Book  G.,  pages  517-522. 


LOUDOUN   COUNTY,  VA.  135 

Debell,  second  lieutenants;  Francis  Adams  and  Joel  White,  ensigns. 
1780,  August:  Robert  Russell,  ensign.  1780,  October:  John  Spitzfathem, 
first  lieutenant;  Thomas  Thomas  and  Matthew  Rust,  second  lieu- 
tenants; Nicholas  Minor,  Jr.,  David  Hopkins,  William  McGeath 
and  Samuel  Oliphant,  ensigns;  Charles  Bennett,  captain.  1780,  Novem- 
ber: James  Coleman,  Esq.,  colonel;  George  West,  lieutenant- colonel; 
James  McLlhaney,  major.  1781,  February:  Simon  Triplett,  colonel; 
John  Alexander,  lieutenant-colonel;  Jacob  Reed,  major;  John  Linton, 
captain;  William  Debell  and  Joel  White,  lieutenants;  Thomas  Minor, 
ensign;  Thomas  Shores,  captain;  John  Tayler  and  Thomas  Beaty,  lieu- 
tenants; John  McClain,  ensign.  1781,  March:  John  McGeath,  captain; 
Ignatius  Burnes,  captain;  Hugh  Douglass,  first  lieutenant;  John  Corne- 
lison.  second  lieutenant;  Joseph  Butler  and  Conn  Oneale,  lieutenants; 
John  Jones,  Jr.,  ensign;  William  Taylor,  major  first  battalion;  James 
Coleman,  colonel;  George  West,  lieutenant- colonel;  Josiah  Maffett, 
captain;  John  Binns,  first  lieutenant;  Charles  Binns,  Jr.,  second  lieu- 
tenant, and  Joseph  Hough,  ensign.  1781,  April:  Samson  Trammel!, 
captain;  Spence  Wiggington  and  Smith  King,  lieutenants.  1781,  May: 
Thomas  Respass,  Esq.,  major;  Hugh  Douglass,  Gent,  captain;  Thomas 
King,  lieutenant;  William  T.  Mason,  ensign;  Samuel  Noland,  captain; 
Abraham  Dehaven  and  Enoch  Thomas,  lieutenants;  Isaac  Dehaven  and 
Thomas  Vince,  ensigns;  James  McLlhaney,  captain;  Thomas  Kennan, 
captain;  John  Bagley,  first  lieutenant.  1781,  June:  Enoch  Furr  and 
George  Rust,  lieutenants;  Withers  Berry  and  William  Hutchison  (son 
of  Benjamin),  ensign.  1781,  September:  Gustavus  Elgin,  captain;  John 
Littleton,  ensign.  1782,  January:  William  McClellan,  captain.  Feb- 
ruary, 1782:  William  George,  Timothy  Hixon,  and  Joseph  Butler,  cap- 
tains. 1782,  March:  James  McLlhaney,  captain;  George  West,  colonel; 
Thomas  Respass,  lieutenant-colonel.  1782,  July:  Samuel  Noland,  major; 
James  Lewin  Gibbs,  second  lieutenant,  and  Giles  Turley,  ensign,  1782, 
August:  Enoch  Thomas,  captain;  Samuel  Smith,  lieutenant;  Matthias 
Smitley,  first  lieutenant;  Charles  Tyler  and  David  Beaty,  ensigns. 
1782,  December:  Thomas  King,  captain;  William  Mason,  first  lieuten- 
ant, and  Silas  Gilbert,  ensign." 

Court  Orders  and  Reimbursements. 

Needy  families  of  the  Revolutionary  soldiers  of  Loudoun 
were  supplied  with  the  necesssaries  of  life  as  per  the  following 
orders : 

"1778,  November  9th:  John  Alexander  to  furnish  Elizabeth  Welch, 
her  husband  being  in  the  army. 

"1778,  Nov.  ISth:    George   Emrey  to  furnish  the  child   of  Jacob 


136  HISTORY  OP 

Rhodes,  said  Jacob  being  in  the  Continental  army.  William  Douglass 
to  furnish  Mary  Rhodes,  her  husband  being  in  the  army.  George 
Summers  to  furnish  William  Gilmore,  his  son  being  in  the  army. 

"1778,  Dec.  14:  Ivcven  Powell  to  furnish  Andrew  LaswcU. 

"1779,  Feb.  8th:  Samuel  Triplett  to  furnish  the  wife  of  Hugh  Hen- 
derson.   Josias  Clapham  to  furnish  Ann  Philips. 

"1779,  March  8th:  Farling  Ball  to  furnish  the  widow  of  Joseph  Col- 
lens  and  the  wife  of  William  Baton.  William  Stanhope  to  furnish  Ann 
Barton. 

"1779,  April:  John  Lewis,  Gent,  to  furnish  the  wife  of  Shadrack 
Reeder.  Hardage  Lane  to  furnish  Sarah  Gilmore,  wife  of  William, 
whose  son  is  in  the  army.  William  BUzey  to  furnish  wife  of  Shadrack 
Reeder.  Josias  Clapham  appointed  to  apply  to  the  Treasurer  for  500 
pounds  to  be  placed  in  the  hands  of  John  Lewis,  Gent,  to  supply  the 
necessaries  of  life  for  those  who  have  husbands  or  children  in  the  Con- 
tinental army. 

"1779,  May:  Farling  Ball  to  furnish  Edward  McGinnis  and  William 
Means.  John  Alexander  to  furnish  Ann  Bartan.  (William  Stanhope  to 
furnish  Ann  Barton,  July  1779-) 

"1779,  August:  Robert  Jamison  to  furnish  Conard  Shanks,  whose  son 
is  in  the  army.  Jonathan  Davis  to  furnish  Mary  Stoker.  Pierce  Bayly 
do.  wife  of  Joel  Coleman. 

"1780,  March:  John  Tyler  do.  Jemima  Coleman. 

"1780,  July:  Simon  Triplett  to  furnish  Jemima  Coleman,  wife  of  Joel, 
not  exceeding  two  barrels  of  flour  and  200  pounds  of  Pork. 

"1780,  September:  John  Alexander  to  furnish  Ann  Barton  one  barrel 
of  corn  and  fifty  pounds  of  Pork.  Josias  Clapham  do.  Catherine  Hen- 
derson, widow  of  Adam  Henderson.  William  Cavans  to  furnish  Ann 
Richards,  her  husband  being  in  the  army,  and  Isabella  Collens,  widow 
of  Joseph. 

'•1780,  November:  Wm.  Bronough  do.  Sarah  Russell,  wife  of  Samuel. 

"1781,  April:  William  Owsley  to  supply  Hannah  Rice  &  two  chil- 
dren, the  family  of  James  Rice,  who  died  in  the  Continental  army. 

"1781,  May:  Adam  Vincel  to  supply  Mary  Tritipoe,  wife  of  Conrad, 
her  husband  being  in  the  army. 

"1781,  Sept.:  Joseph  Thomas  to  supply  the  widow  of  David  Hamilton 
(a  soldier  who  was  killed  in  the  Continental  army). 

"1782,  Jan.:  John  Tyler,  Gent,  to  furnish  the  family  of  Cornelius 
Slacht  (he  being  an  18  months'  draft). 

"1782,  Feb.:  John  Lewis,  Gent,  to  furnish  Eleanor  Wilcox  (a  soldier's 
wife). 

"1782,  March:  William  Douglass  to  furnish  Eleanor  Wilcox,  agree- 
able to  an  order  of  the  last  Court  directed  to  John  Lewis,  Gent,  the  said 
Lewis  declining." 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  137 

"Treasurer  to  pay  sundry  persons  for  furnishing  supplies  as  per  their 
several  accounts: 

•'1778,  May  12:  William  Ellzey,  Esq.,  £3  8s.  9d.,  on  account  of  wife 
of  John  Stoker  and  £2  10s.  ditto  for  wife  of  Shadrack  Reeder.  Wm. 
Douglass,  ;^50  14s.  6d.  as  per  acct. 

"1778,  June  9:  Andrew  Adam,  j^\3  5d.,  for  Margaret  Hill  (service). 

"1778,  Aug.  10:   Farling  Ball,  ^4  I6s.  9d.  John  Alexander,  ;^5. 

"1778,  Sept.  14:  Iveveu  Powell,  Gent,  ^6,  Is.  William  Douglass, 
Gent,  /47  7s.  John  Tyler,  £3  19s.  6d. 

"1778,  Sept.  15:  Farling  Ball,  Gent,  /I  17s.  6d. 

"1778,  Nov.  9:  Andrew  Adam,  j^i6  15s. 

"1778,  Nov.  15:  Daniel  Losh,  /24  6s.  9d.  Geo.  West,  Gent,  ;^3  10s. 
Farling  Ball,  ditto,  /2. 

"1778,  Dec.  14:  Joshua  Daniel,  Gent,  /9  ISs.  John  Orr, /7,  l6s. 

"1779,  Feb.  9,  Farling  Ball,  /18  13s.  9d.  Wm.  Douglass,  £S3  9s.  id. 
Chas.  Binns,  £3  on  acct.  of  widow  of  Hamilton. 

"1779,  April:  John  Alexander,  ;^68  15s.  Daniel  Ivosh,  ;^10  37s.  Will- 
iam Douglass,  Gent,  ;^28  l6s.  Andrew  Adam,  ^17  13s.  Wm.  Ellzey, 
;^24  2s. 

"1779,  May:  Geo.  West,  Gent,  ;^42  14s. 

"1779,  Jnne:  Andrew  Adam,  ;^12  38.  6d.  John  Orr,  /43  l6s.  Wm. 
Douglass,  ^18  I6s.     Farling  Ball,  Gent,  /175  5s. 

"1779,  July:  John  Alexander,  /18. 

"1779,  August:  Jacob  Tracey,  ;^20  for  nursing  and  burying  Sophia 
Harris,  the  wife  of  a  continental  soldier. 

"1779,  Oct.  Pierce  Bayly,  Gent,  /lO.  Simon  Triplett,  ;^43,  9s.  lOd. 
Robert  Jamison,  ;^30.  Jonathan  Davis,  ;^32  lOs.  Farling  Ball,  /6l  10s. 
6d.     Wm.  Douglass,  Gent,  ;^51  15s. 

"1779,  John  Orr,  Gent,  ;^93  8s.  3d.  Ivcven  Powell,  Gent,  /69  lOi. 
Wm.  Stanhope,  Gent,  /4  4s. 

"1780,  Jan. :  Jonathan  Davis,  Gent,  ^50.  Wm.  Stanhope,  Gent,  ;^4  4s. 

"1780,  February:  Thomas  George, /206.  Israel  Thompson,  j^U9 
2s.     George  Emrey,  £46  19s. 

"1780,  March:   Hardage  Lane,  Gent,  /83  8s. 

"1780,  April:  Thomas  George,  ;^15.  Farling  Ball,  Gent,  /■99  6s. 
Wm.  Douglass,  Gent,  /69  10s. 

"  1780,  June:  John  Tyler,  Gent,  ^40.     Pierce  Bayly,  Gent,  /20. 

"  1780,  August:  John  Orr,  Gent,  /500.    Wm.  Douglass,  Gent,  ^^44. 

"  1780,  November:  Thomas  George,  /221.  Farling  Ball,  £$0.  George 
Tyler,  Gent,  ^8.    George  Emrey,  Gent,  /163  12s. 

"  1781,  March:  John  Orr,  Gent,  ;^431  I6s.     Wm.  Cavans,  /■120. 

"  1782,  Feb.:  John  Orr,  as  per  acct.,  for  furnishing  Mary  Butler,  a 
soldier's  wife,  with  necessaries." 
45—10 


138  HISTORY  OF 

Close  of  the  Struggle. 

On  the  25tli  of  November,  I783,  the  British  army  evacuated 
New  York.  The  independence  of  the  United  States  had  been 
acknowledged  by  the  British  Government  and  the  war  was 
ended.  During  the  following  month  most  of  the  Continental 
troops  from  lyoudoun  returned  to  their  homes,  many  of  them 
to  spend  the  remainder  of  their  days  in  hard-earned  peace. 

WAR  OF  1812. 

The  Compelling  Cause. 

Following  the  Revolution,  a  number  of  new  towns  sprang 
into  being,  educational  institutions  multiplied,  the  population 
of  the  County  steadily  increased,  and  the  people  were  indus- 
trious, enterprising,  and  happy. 

A  second  difiSculty,  however,  soon  interrupted  this  tran- 
quillity, and  the  quarrel  between  the  two  governments  was 
referred  to  the  arbitrament  of  the  War  of  1812,  fought  by  the 
United  States  against  England  for  maritime  independence. 

The  honor  of  the  new  republic  was  assailed  on  the  high 
seas  by  the  insistence  of  Great  Britain  of  a  right  to  search 
American  vessels  for  fugitive  British  subjects.  A  doctrine 
which  America  regarded  as  established  by  the  Revolution, 
to  wit,  that  a  citizen  of  a  foreign  country  could  voluntarily 
surrender  his  native  citizenship  and  swear  allegiance  to 
another  government,  was  disputed  by  Great  Britain,  who  held 
that  "once  an  Englishman  was  to  be  an  Englishman  always." 
Upon  this  ground  American  vessels  were  held  up  on  the  ocean 
by  English  men-of-war  and  searched  to  such  an  extent  that 
within  the  eight  years  of  forbearance  over  6,000  men  were 
taken  from  the  ships  of  the  United  States  and  forced  into  the 
British  navy. 

This  audacious  conduct  thoroughly  aroused, the  indignation 
of  the  American  people,  in  which  resentment  it  is  supposed 
the  people  of  lyoudoun  warmly  concurred.  Seeing  that  blood- 
shed was  necessary  in  order  to  maintain  the  national  honor, 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  139 

and  spurred  by  urgent  petitions,  President  Madison  recom- 
mended to  Congress  a  declaration  of  war,  which  was  accord- 
ingly promulgated  June  18,  1812. 

State  Archives  at  Leesburg.^ 

When  the  British  were  on  their  way  from  Bladensburg  to 
Washington,  in  August,  1814,  James  Monroe,  then  Secretary 
of  State,  had  been  for  several  days  with  General  Winder,  recon- 
noitering  the  enemy,  and  watching  the  movements  of  both 
armies.  Knowing  the  weakness  of  the  American  forces,  he 
biliev^ed  Washington  to  be  in  great  peril.  He  dispatched  a 
letter  to  President  Madison,  advising  the  removal  of  the  of- 
ficial records.  Stephen  Pleasanton,  then  a  clerk  in  the  State 
Department,  made  immediate  preparation  for  the  removal  of 
the  books  and  papers  in  that  department.  He  had  linen  bags 
hastily  made  and  placed  in  them  the  State  archives,  which 
were  then  loaded  in  wagons  and  hauled  across  the  chain 
bridge,  over  the  Potomac,  to  the  grist  mill  of  Edgar  Patter- 
son, two  miles  above  Georgetown.  Not  feeling  sure  of  their 
safety  there,  he  had  them  reloaded  on  wagons  and  con- 
veyed to  Leesburg,  where  they  were  placed  in  an  unoccupied 
building, t  the  key  of  which  was  given  to  a  recently  ordained 
clergyman,  named  I^ittlejohn.  There  they  remained  until  the 
last  hostile  Briton  had  reached  Baltimore,  when  they  were 
carefully  hauled  back  to  Washington. t  Thus  we  saved  the 
precious  documents  of  the  revolutionary  war,  as  well  as  our 
state  archives,  and  thus  does  Leesburg  boast,  with  abstract 
truthfulness,  that  for  a  little  more  than  two  weeks  it  was  the 
Capital  of  the  United  States. 

^Anonymous. 

fPerhaps  the  most  precious  of  these  documents  was  the  Declaration 
of  Independence,  which  it  has  been  asserted,  was  deposited  here. 

JMrs.  A.  H.  Throckmorton,  in  an  interesting  narrative  to  which  allu- 
sion is  made  elsewhere  in  this  volume,  differs  with  the  authority  here 
quoted  as  to  the  disposition  of  these  important  papers.  She  says:  "For 
one  night  they  remained  in  the  court-house  here  (Leesburg)  and  were 
then  carried  several  miles  out  in  the  country  to  the  estate  of  "Rockeby, " 
now  owned  by  Mr.  H.  B.  Nalle,  .  .  .  and  securely  locked  within 
the  old  vault  and  remained  out  of  reach  of  the  enemy  for  two  weeks," 


140  HISTORY  OF 

THE  MASON-McCARTY  DUEL. 

The  duel,  February  6,  1819,  between  Armistead  T.  Mason 
and  John  M.  McCarty,  both  residents  of  I^oudoun  County,  was 
the  second  "affair  of  honor"  to  be  settled  on  the  now  famous 
field  of  Bladensburg.  They  were  cousins,  who  became  enemies 
during  Mason's  brief  term  in  the  United  States  Senate. 
Mason,  known  as  "The  Chief  of  Selma,"  was  a  graduate  of 
William  and  Mary  College  and  the  commander  of  a  cavalry 
regiment*  in  the  war  of  1812.  He  later  became  brigadier 
general  of  the  Virginia  militia.  He  married  and  took  up  his 
residence  at  Selma  plantation ,  four  miles  north  of  Leesburg. 
Wishing  to  make  it  possible  for  the  Quakers  of  Loudoun  to 
contribute  their  share  toward  the  support  of  the  army, 
Mason  introduced  in  the  Senate  a  bill  to  permit,  in  case  of 
draft,  the  furnishing  of  substitutes  on  payment  of  |500  each. 
For  this  McCarty  branded  him  a  coward,  and  thence  sprung 
a  succession  of  bitter  quarrels,  the  real  basis  of  which  was  a 
difference  of  political  opinions.  The  details  of  both  sides  of 
the  feud  were  published  weekly  in  the  Leesburg  '  *  Genius  of 
Liberty,"  and  later  were  issued  in  pamphlet  form  as  campaign 
material. 

Mason's  side  was  defeated.  He  earnestly  wished  to  avoid 
a  duel,  but  McCarty  continued  to  provoke  him,  with  the  hope 
of  compelling  him  to  fight.  This  he  finally  decided  to  do. 
He  left  his  home  without  revealing  his  intentions  and  on 
reaching  Washington  made  his  final  preparations  with  great 
deliberation.  " The  Chief  of  Selma"  fell  February  6,  I8l9, 
his  heart  pierced  by  the  ball  of  his  antagonist.  He  was  but 
32  years  of  age.  His  body  was  borne  to  Leesburg,  where  it 
was  buried  in  the  Episcopal  churchyard,  with  an  imposing 
Masonic  ritual.  The  grief  of  his  slaves  was  painful  to  witness. 
His  only  child  became  an  officer  in  the  United  States  army, 
and  was  mortally  wounded  in  the  battle  of  Cerro  Gordo. 

*Many  of  the  Germans  of  lyoudoun  served  in  this   regiment   which 
participated  in  the  Battle  of  Baltimore. 


IvOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  141 

HOME  OF  PRESIDENT  MONROE. 

**Oak  Hill,"  the  country  seat  of  James  Monroe,  ex-Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  and  author  of  the  world-famed 
Monroe  Doctrine,  is  situated  near  Aldie,  in  Loudoun  County, 
on  the  turnpike  running  south  from  Leesburg  to  Aldie,  about 
nine  miles  from  the  former  and  three  from  the  latter  place. 

The  main  building,  with  an  imposing  Grecian  facade,  was 
planned  by  Monroe  while  in  the  presidential  chair,  and  its  con- 
struction superintended  by  William  Benton,  an  Englishman, 
who  served  him  in  the  triple  capacity  of  steward,  counselor, 
and  friend.  The  dimensions  are  about  50  by  90  feet;  it  is 
built  of  brick  in  a  most  substantial  manner,  and  handsomely 
finished;  has  three  stories  (including  basement),  a  wide 
portico  fronting  south,  with  massive  Doric  columns  thirty  feet 
in  height,  and  is  surrounded  by  a  grove  of  magnificent  oaks, 
locusts,  and  poplars,  covering  several  acres.  It  has  been  said 
that  prior  to  his  inauguration  he  occupied  a  wooden  dwelling 
of  humble  pretensions  standing  wdthin  a  stone's  throw^  of  its 
palatial  progeny.  Monroe's  term  of  oflBce  expired  March  4, 
1825,  and  soon  after  the  inauguration  of  his  successor  he  re- 
tired to  *'  Oak  Hill,"  which  immediately  became,  like  Monti- 
cello  and  Montpelier,  although  to  a  lesser  degree,  a  center  of 
social  and  political  pilgrimages. 

The  financial  affairs  of  its  owner  were  seriously  embarrassed 
from  the  first,  and  he  labored  in  vain  to  obtain  justice  from  the 
country  he  had  served  so  long  and  so  well,  at  heavy  pecuniary 
cost  and  loss.  His  old  friend,  Lafayette,  now  once  more 
prosperous,  sent  an  offer  of  assistance  with  a  delicacy  and 
generosity  which  did  him  honor.  A  little  was  done  at  last 
by  Congress,  but  not  enough,  and  the  day  came  when  ' '  Oak 
Hill ' '  was  offered  for  sale. 

While  residing  here,  the  post  of  regent  of  the  University  of 
Virginia,  which  was  instituted  in  1826,  was  accepted  by  Mr. 
Monroe  as  not  inconsistent  with  his  view  of  the  entire  retire- 
ment from  public  life  becoming  an  ex-President.  Associated 
with  him  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties  as  regent,  as  in  so 


142  HISTORY  OF 

many  long  years  of  patriotic  toil,  were  Jeiferson  and  Madison. 

When  the  State  of  Virginia  called  a  convention  for  the  revision 
of  her  constitution,  Mr.  Monroe  consented  to  become  a  mem- 
ber. He  took  an  active  interest  in  the  affairs  of  his.  own 
neighborhood,  discharging  the  duties  of  a  local  magistrate. 

Mrs.  Monroe  died  at  *'  Oak  Hill"  on  September  23d,  I83O, 
and  after  her  departure  the  old  man  found  his  lonely  farm 
life  insupportable.  He  had  previously  visited  much  with  his 
daughters,  and  he  now  went  to  live  with  Mrs.  Gouverneur, 
in  New  York.     He  wrote  to  Mr.  Madison,  April  11,  I83I: 

"  It  is  very  distressing  to  me  to  sell  my  property  in  lyou- 
doun,  for  besides  parting  with  all  I  have  in  the  State,  I 
indulged  a  hope,  if  I  could  retain  it,  that  I  might  be  able 
occasionally  to  visit  it,  and  meet  my  friends,  or  many  of  them, 
there.  But  ill  health  and  advanced  years  prescribe  a  course 
which  we  must  pursue.     .     .     ." 

GENERAL  LAFAYETTE'S  VISIT.* 

The  greatest  social  event  in  the  history  of  Leesburg  was  the 
visit  of  General  I^afayette,  August  9,  1825.  The  great 
Frenchman,  accompanied  by  President  John  Quincy  Adams, 
had  visited  ex-President  Monroe  at  ''Oak  Hill,"  from  which 
place  the  august  procession,  headed  by  two  troops  of  cavalry, 
made  the  eleven  mile  journey  to  I^eesburg.  I^afayette,  the 
President,  the  ex-President  and  the  chairman  of  the  Town 
Council,  rode  in  the  first  carriage,  drawn  by  four  white 
horses.  On  reaching  I^eesburg,  they  were  greeted  by  six 
companies  of  militia,  among  them  a  few  old  soldiers  of  the 
Revolution.  At  the  firing  of  the  national  salute,  Lafayette 
descended  from  his  carriage  and  shook  hands  with  those 
veterans  and  heroes. 

*This  account  of  General  lyafayette's  visit,  save  for  a  few  minor  altera- 
tions and  one  or  two  supplementary  facts,  is  from  the  pen  of  Mrs.  A.  H. 
Throckmorton,  of  this  County,  having  formed  part  of  an  historical 
sketch  of  Leesburg  contributed  by  her  to  the  old  Richmond  Times^ 
July  19,  1902. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  145 

Standing  on  his  front  porch,  Dr.  McCabe,  the  town's 
Mayor,  delivered  an  address  of  welcome  to  which  Lafayette 
responded.  Across  the  street  at  Osborne's  Hotel*  a  reception 
was  tendered  him,  after  which  the  distinguished  visitor  was 
driven  through  the  principal  streets  of  the  town.  On  reach- 
ing the  court-house  square,  then,  as  now,  a  large  inclosure 
shaded  by  giant  trees,  Lafayette,  on  alighting  from  the  coach, 
kissed  a  tiny  maiden  upheld  in  the  arms  of  her  negro  nurse. 
The  little  girl  was  Mrs.  Wildman,  who  after  reaching  a 
venerable  age  departed  this  life  in  the  summer  of  1901. 

Lafayette  passed  up  an  avenue  formed  on  the  right  by 
boys  and  girls  and  the  young  ladies  of  Leesburg  Female 
Academy,  and  on  the  left  by  the  youths  of  the  Leesburg 
Institute.  The  former  wore  white,  with  blue  sashes,  and  their 
heads  were  tastefully  adorned  with  evergreens.  They  held 
sprigs  of  laurel  with  which  they  strewed  the  great  guest's 
pathway.  The  lads  wore  red  sashes  and  white  and  black 
cockades. 

One  of  them  pronounced  an  address  of  welcome,  and  was 
amply  rewarded  by  a  grasp  of  the  hero's  hand.  As  Lafayette 
ascended  the  portico  of  the  court-house  a  little  girl  stepped 
forward,  holding  a  wreath  of  laurel,  and  said: 

Hail  Patriot,  Statesman,  Hero,  Sage! 

Hail  Freedom's  friend,  hail  Gallia's  son. 
Whose  laurels  greener  grow  in  age, 

Plucked  by  the  side  of  Washington. 
Hail,  champion  in  a  holy  cause, 

When  hostile  bands  our  shores  beset; 
Whose  valor  made  the  oppressor  pause, 

Hail,  holy  warrior,  Lafayette? 

She,  too,  was  honored  by  a  grasp  of  Lafayette's  hand  as 
well  as  a  kiss.  After  an  oration  by  Ludwell  Lee,  the  distin- 
guished party  returned  to  the  hotel  where  they  were  enter- 
tained by  a  delegation  of  the  ladies  of  the  village,  while  an- 
other delegation  superintended  the  spreading  of  a  banquet  on 
court-house   square.    Two    hundred  persons  participated   in 

*A  fine  stone  mansion,  still  standing,  and  the  residence  of  the  late 
Colonel  John  H.  Alexander,  during  his  lifetime  one  of  the  foremost 
lawyers  of  the  State. 


144  HISTORY  OF 

this  banquet.  The  numerous  toasts  were  remarkable  for  lofti- 
ness of  thought  and  elegance  of  diction.  President  Adams 
launched  the  following  sentiment: 

"The  living  records  of  the  war  of  Independence  like. the 
prophetic  books  of  the  Sibyl,  increasing  in  value  as  they 
diminish  in  numbers." 

I^afayette  toasted  General  Bolivar,  "who  has  felt  true 
patriotism,  and  understood  true  glory."  Another  toast  was 
"To  the  memory  of  Washington,  fresh  as  the  passing  moment, 
lasting  as  eternity. ' ' 

It  is  estimated  that  10,000  persons  witnessed  the  festivities. 
Lafayette,  after  a  brief  sojourn  at  the  plantation  of  Ludwell 
Lee,  departed  for  a  visit  to  Madison  at  "Montpelier,"  and 
Jefferson,  at  "Monticello." 

MEXICAN  WAR. 

Scarcely  a  generation  had  passed,  during  which  the  whole 
country  passed  through  several  years  of  financial  distress, 
when  the  United  States  became  involved  in  a  brief  successful 
war  with  Mexico,  caused  chiefly  by  the  resistance  of  that 
country  to  the  "annexation  of  Texas."  But  it  is  not  within 
the  scope  of  this  sketch  to  follow  the  history  of  that  foreign 
struggle.  It  is  suflBcient  to  say  that  the  people  of  Loudoun 
favored  most  heartily  the  annexation  of  Texas,  and  responded, 
indirectly  of  course,  to  the  small  quota  of  men  and  money 
required  by  the  Government. 

The  entire  United  States  force  employed  in  the  invasion  of 
Mexico  was  composed  of  26,690  regulars  and  56,926  volun- 
teers, not  including  those  serving  in  the  navy.  The  losses  of 
men  by  death  from  disease  and  wounds  were  about  11,000, 
and  the  number  killed  in  battle,  about  1,500.  The  cost  in 
money  amounted  to  $150,000,000.  The  gain  consisted  of  the 
cession  of  extensive  territory  stretching  to  the  Pacific  Ocean, 
several  thousand  miles  of  valuable  sea  coast  and  an  immense 
bound  of  the  United  States  into  international  power.  In  the 
accomplishment  of  this  general  result  Loudoun  sent  many  of 
her  sturdiest  sons,  who  served  from  the  State  in  various  bodies 
throughout  the  war. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  145 

SECESSION  AND  CIVIL  WAR. 

Loudou7i  County  in  the  Secession  Movement. 

The  election  of  Lincoln  and  attendant  success  of  the 
Republican  party  revived  the  determination  of  the  South  to 
secede  from  the  Union. 

Just  ac  this  juncture  the  prosperity  of  Loudoun  was  unpre- 
cedented, and  the  threatened  dissolution  was  a  serious  menace 
to  her  progress.  General  trade  had  recently  been  greatly 
stimulated,  and  the  resources  of  the  County  were  being  daily 
multiplied. 

Following  the  resolute  lead  of  the  other  southern  States, 
the  legislature  of  Virginia,  on  January  14,  1861,  authorized 
a  State  convention  to  consider  the  advisability  of  secession, 
and  the  members  elected  in  pursuance  thereof  met  in  the 
capitol,  at  Richmond,  at  12  o'clock  m.,  on  Wednesday,  the 
13  th  day  of  the  February  following.  They  constituted  what  was 
perhaps  the  ablest  body  of  men  that  ever  assembled  in  the 
State,  and  the  friends  and  foes  of  secession  were  alike  repre- 
sented. The  delegates  from  Loudoun  were  John  Janney  and 
John  A.  Carter,  both  of  whom  had  represented  her  in  the  con- 
stitutional convention  of  1850,51. 

Roll  call  was  followed  by  the  election  of  a  permanent  chair- 
man, Mr.  Janney,  of  Loudoun,  receiving  a  majority  of  the 
whole  number  of  votes  cast.  Two  of  the  members  were  then 
designated  a  committee  to  wait  upon  the  president  of  the  con- 
vention to  inform  him  of  his  election  and  conduct  him  to  his 
seat.     Whereupon  he  addressed  the  convention  as  follows:* 

'■'Gentlemen  of  the  Convention:  I  tender  you  my  sincere  and  cordial 
thanks  for  the  honor  you  have  bestowed  upon  me  by  calling  me  to  pre- 
side over  the  deUberations  of  the  most  important  convention  that  has 
assembled  in  this  State  since  the  year  1776. 

*The  unabridged  publication  in  this  work  of  Mr.  Janney 's  speech  of 
acceptance  has  seemed  specially  appropriate.  It  is  the  plea  of  a  Loudoun 
man  for  conservative  action  boldly  put  forth  at  a  time  when  men's  pas- 
sions were  inflamed  almost  beyond  human  credulity,  and  while  he  him- 
self was  the  presiding  officer  of  a  body  which  had  met  to  decide  the 
destiny  of  the  Old  Dominion  and  whose  deliberations  were  to  be  watched 
with  breathless  interest  by  the  people  of  both  hemispheres. 


146  HISTORY  OF 

"I  am  without  experience  in  the  performance  of  the  duties  to  which 
you  have  assigned  me,  with  but  little  knowledge  of  parliamentary  law 
and  the  rules  which  are  to  govern  our  proceedings,  and  I  have  nothing 
to  promise  you  but  fidelity  and  impartiality.  Errors  I  know  I  shall 
commit,  but  these  will  be  excused  by  your  kindness,  and  promptly  cor- 
rected by  your  wisdom. 

"Gentlemen,  it  is  now  almost  seventy-three  years  since  a  convention 
of  the  people  of  Virginia  was  assembled  in  this  hall  to  ratify  the  Con- 
stitution of  the  United  States,  one  of  the  chief  objects  of  which  was  to 
consolidate,  not  the  Government,  but  the  Union  of  the  States. 

"Causes  which  have  passed,  and  are  daily  passing,  into  history, 
which  will  set  its  seal  upon  them,  but  which  I  do  not  mean  to  review, 
have  brought  the  Constitution  and  the  Union  into  imminent  peril,  and 
Virginia  has  come  to  the  rescue.  It  is  what  the  whole  country  ex- 
pected of  her.  Her  pride  as  well  as  her  patriotism — her  interest  as  well 
as  her  honor,  called  upon  her  with  an  emphasis  which  she  could  not 
disregard,  to  save  the  monuments  of  her  own  glory.  Her  honored  son 
who  sleeps  at  Mount  Vernon,  the  political  mecca  of  all  future  ages,  pre- 
sided over  the  body  which  framed  the  Constitution;  and  another  of  her 
honored  sons,  whose  brow  was  adorned  with  a  civic  wreath  which  will 
never  fade,  and  who  now  reposes  in  Orange  county,  was  its  principal 
architect,  and  one  of  its  ablest  expounders — and,  in  the  administration 
of  the  government,  five  of  her  citizens  have  been  elected  to  the  chief 
magistracy  of  the  Republic. 

"It  can  not  be  that  a  Government  thus  founded  and  administered  can 
fail,  without  the  hazard  of  bringing  reproach,  either  upon  the  wisdom 
of  our  fathers,  or  upon  the  intelligence,  patriotism,  and  virtue  of  their 
descendants.  It  is  not  my  purpose  to  indicate  the  course  which  this 
body  will  probably  pursue,  or  the  measures  it  may  be  proper  to  adopt. 
The  opinions  of  today  may  all  be  changed  tomorrow.  Events  are 
thronging  upon  us,  and  we  must  deal  with  them  as  they  preseut 
themselves. 

"Gentlemen,  there  is  4,  flag  which  for  nearly  a  century  has  been 
borne  in  triumph  through  the  battle  and  the  breeze,  and  which  now 
floats  over  this  capitol,  on  which  there  is  a  star  representing  this  ancient 
Commonwealth,  and  my  earnest  prayer,  in  which  I  know  every  member 
of  this  body  will  cordially  unite,  is  that  it  may  remain  there  forever, 
provided  always  that  its  lustre  is  untarnished.  We  demand  for  our  own 
citizens  perfect  equality  of  rights  with  those  of  the  empire  States  of 
New  York,  Pennsylvania,  and  Ohio,  but  we  ask  for  nothing  that  we 
will  not  cheerfully  concede  to  those  of  Delaware  and  Rhode  Island. 

"The  amount  of  responsibility  which  rests  upon  this  body  can  not 
be  exaggerated.  When  my  constituents  asked  me  if  I  would  consent 
to  serve  them  here  if  elected,  I  answered  in  the  affirmative,  but  I  did  so 
with  fear  and  trembling.    The  people  of  Virginia  have,  it  is  true, 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  147 

reserved  to  themselves,  in  a  certain  contingency,  the  right  to  review  our 
action,  but  still  the  measures  which  we  adopt  may  be  fraught  with  good 
or  evil  to  the  whole  country. 

"Is  it  too  much  to  hope  that  we,  and  others  who  are  engaged  in  the 
work  of  peace  and  conciliation,  may  so  solve  the  problems  which  now 
perplex  us,  as  to  win  back  our  sisters  of  the  South,  who,  for  what  they 
d^em  sufficient  cause,  have  wandered  from  their  old  orbits?  May  we 
not  expect  that  our  old  sister,  Massachusetts,  will  retrace  her  steps? 
Will  she  not  follow  the  noble  example  of  Rhode  Island,  the  little  State 
with  a  heart  large  enough  for  a  whole  continent?  "Will  she  not,  when 
she  remembers  who  it  was  who  first  drew  his  sword  from  the  scabbard 
on  her  own  soil  at  Cambridge,  and  never  finally  returned  it,  until  her 
liberty  and  independence  were  achieved,  and  whence  he  came,  repeal 
her  obnoxious  laws,  which  many  of  her  wisest  and  best  citizens  regard 
as  a  stain  upon  her  legislative  records  ? 

"Gentlemen,  this  is  no  party  convention.  It  is  our  duty  on  an  occa- 
sion like  this  to  elevate  ourselves  into  an  atmosphere,  in  which  party 
passion  and  prejudice  can  not  exist — to  conduct  all  our  deliberations 
with  calmness  and  wisdom,  and  to  maintain,  with  inflexible  firmness, 
whatever  position  we  may  find  it  necessary  to  assume." 

The  proceedings  were  dignified,  solemn,  and,  at  times, 
even  sad.  During  the  entire  session  good  feelings  prevailed 
to  a  remarkable  degree.  For  these  harmonious  relations  credit 
is  principally  due  the  secessionists.  Very  often  their  actions 
were  regarded  with  suspicion  by  their  opponents  who,  at  such 
times,  pursued  a  policy  of  obstruction  when  nothing  was  to 
be  gained  thereby.  But  they  were  given  every  privilege  and 
shown  every  consideration. 

On  April  17,  I86I,  the  convention,  in  secret  session,  passed 
the  ordinance  of  secession  by  a  vote  of  88  to  5  5  on  condition 
that  it  should  be  submitted  to  the  people  for  their  approval 
or  rejection  at  an  election  to  be  held  the  23d  of  May  for  that 
purpose.  Loudoun's  delegates  voted  solidly  against  the 
measure. 

In  the  convention  opinions  varied  as  to  whether  peace  or 
war  would  follow  secession.  The  great  majority  of  the  mem- 
bers, as  of  the  people,  believed  that  peaceful  relations  would 
continue.  All  truly  wished  for  peace.  A  number  expressed 
themselves  as  fearing  war,  but  this  was  when  opposing  seces- 
sion.    Yet  in  nearly  all  the  speeches  made  in  the  convention 


148  HISTORY  OF 

there  seemed  to  be  distinguishable  a  feeling  of  fear  and  dread 
lest  war  should  follow.  However,  had  war  been  a  certainty- 
secession  would  not  have  been  delayed  or  defeated. 

There  was  warm  discussion  on  the  question  of  submitting 
the  ordinance  to  the  people  for  ratification  or  rejection. 
Many,  both  before  and  after  the  passage  of  the  ordinance, 
favored  its  reference  to  the  people  in  the  vainjhope  that  the 
measure  would  in  this  way  be  frustrated.  They  declared  that, 
in  a  matter  of  such  vital  importance,  involving  the  lives  and 
liberties  of  a  whole  people,  the  ordinance  should  be  submitted 
to  them  for  their  discussion,  and  that  secession  should  be  at- 
tempted only  after  ratification  by  a  direct  vote  of  the  people 
on  that  single  issue. 

Affecting  and  exciting  scenes  followed  the  passage  of  the 
ordinance.  One  by  one  the  strong  members  of  the  minority 
arose  and,  for  the  sake  of  unity  at  home,  surrendered  the 
opinions  of  a  lifetime  and  forgot  the  prejudices  of  years.  This 
was  done  with  no  feeling  of  humiliation.  To  the  last  they 
were  treated  with  distinguished  consideration  by  their 
opponents. 

Shortly  after  the  convention  began  its  deliberations  a  mass 
meeting  was  held  in  I^eesburg,  where  the  secession  sentiment 
was  practically  unanimous,  for  the  purpose  of  adopting  reso- 
lutions to  be  sent  to  that  important  body  recommending  the 
immediate  passage  of  the  ordinance  of  secession.  The  citizens 
were  addressed  by  Col.  J.  M.  Kilgore  and  others. 

The  vote  in  Loudoun  for  the  ratification  or  rejection  of  the 
ordinance  of  secession,  while  not  close,  was  somewhat  spirited 
and  marked  by  slight  disturbances  at  the  polls.  In  practically 
every  precinct  outside  the  German  and  Quaker  settlements  a 
majority  vote  was  cast  in  favor  of  secession. 

No  county  in  the  State  eclipsed  Loudoun  in  devotion  to  the 
principles  on  which  Virginia's  withdrawal  from  the  Union 
was  based,  and  the  courage  displayed  by  her  in  maintaining 
these  principles  made  her  the  acknowledged  equal  of  any 
community  in  the  Southland. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  149 

LoudourCs  Participation  in  the  War. 

A  discussion  in  this  volume  of  the  great  Civil  War  and  its 
causes  has  at  no  time  been  contemplated,  and  vain  appeals 
addressed  to  surviving  Confederate  soldiers  and  Government 
record  keepers  long  ago  demonstrated  the  impracticability  of 
a  thorough  account  of  the  part  borne  by  Loudoun  soldiers  in 
that  grand,  uneven  struggle  of  l86l-'65.  Their  exact  num- 
bers even  can  not  be  ascertained  as  the  original  enlistment 
records  were  either  lost  or  destroyed  and  duplicates  never 
completed. 

It  may  with  truth  be  said  that  the  extent  of  the  service 
rendered  by  Loudoun  in  this,  as  well  as  preceding  wars,  will 
never  be  fully  known  or  adequately  appreciated.  However, 
certain  it  is  that  thousands  of  her  sons  espoused  the  cause  of 
the  Confederacy,  hundreds  died  in  its  defense,  and  not  a  few, 
by  their  valor  and  devotion,  won  enduring  fame  and  meritor- 
ious mention  in  the  annals  of  their  government. 

At  home  or  in  the  ranks,  throughout  this  trying  period  of 
civil  strife,  her  people,  with  no  notable  exceptions,  remained 
liberal  and  brave  and  constant,  albeit  they  probably  suffered 
more  real  hardships  and  deprivations  than  any  other  com- 
munity of  like  size  in  the  Southland.  There  were  few  Con- 
federate troops  for  its  defense,  and  the  Federals  held  each 
neighborhood  responsible  for  all  attacks  made  in  its  vicinity, 
often  destroying  private  property  as  a  punishment. 

Both  armies,  prompted  either  by  fancied  military  necessity 
or  malice,  burned  or  confiscated  valuable  forage  crops  and 
other  stores,  and  nearly  every  locality,  at  one  time  or  another, 
witnessed  depredation,  robbery,  murder,  arson,  and  rapine. 
Several  towns  were  shelled,  sacked,  and  burned,  but  the 
worst  damage  was  done  the  country  districts  by  raiding  parties 
of  Federals.  Much  of  the  destruction  is  now  seen  to  have  been 
unnecessary  from  a  military  point  of  view. 

Whole  armies  were  subsisted  on  the  products  of  Loudoun's 
fruitful  acres.  Opposing  forces,  sometimes  only  detachments 
and  roving  bands,  but  quite  as  often  battalions,  regiments, 
brigades,  and  even  whole  divisions  were  never  absent  from 


150  HISTORY  OF 

the  County  and  the  clash  of  swords  and  fire  of  musketry  were 
an  ever-present  clamor  and  one  to  which  Loudoun  ears  early 
became  accustomed. 

Also,  there  were  times  when  the  main  bodies  of  one  or  .the 
other  of  both  armies  were  encamped  wholly  or  in  part  within 
her  limits,  as  in  September,  1862,  when  the  triumphant  army 
of  Lee,  on  the  eve  of  the  first  Maryland  campaign,  was  halted 
at  Leesburg  and  stripped  of  all  superfluous  transportation, 
broken-down  horses,  and  wagons  and  batteries  not  supplied 
with  good  horses  being  left  behind;*  again,  in  June,  I863, 
when  Hooker  was  being  held  in  bounds  with  his  great  army 
stretched  from  Manassas,  near  Bull  Run,  to  Leesburg,  near 
the  Potomac;  and  yet  again,  in  July,  I863,  when  Lee's  army, 
falling  back  from  Maryland  after  the  battle  of  Gettysburg, 
was  followed  by  the  Federal  forces  under  General  Meade,  who 
crossed  the  Potomac  and  advanced  through  Loudoun. 

General  Early,  after  the  short  and  bloody  battle  of  Monoc- 
acy,  and  following  his  invasion  of  Maryland  and  demonstra- 
tion against  Washington,  recrossed  the  Potomac  at  White's 
Ford,  July  14,  I864,  and,  resting  near  Leesburg,  on  the  l6th 
marched  to  the  Shenandoah  valley  by  way  of  Leesburg  and 
Purcellville,  through  Snicker's  Gap  of  the  Blue  Ridge,  with 
Jackson's  Cavalry  in  advance. 

Pitched  battles  and  lesser  engagements  were  fought  at  Ed- 
wards' Ferry,  Balls  Bluff,  Snickersville  (now  Bluemont), 
Leesburg,  Middleburg,  Aldie,  Hamilton,  Waterford,  Union, 
Ashby's  Gap,  and  other  points  in  the  County. 

During  Stonewall  Jackson's  investment  of  Harper's  Ferry 
in  September,  1862,  guns  were  put  in  position  on  Loudoun 
Heights,  supported  by  two  regiments  of  infantry,  and  a  por- 
tion of  Jackson's  own  immediate  command  was  placed  with 
artillery  on  a  bluffy  shoulder  of  that  mountain. 

*On  the  5th  day  of  September,  to  the  martial  strains  of  "  Maryland, 
My  Maryland  "  from  every  band  in  the  army,  and  with  his  men  cheer- 
ing and  shouting  with  delight,  Jackson  forded  the  Potomac  at  Edwards' 
Ferry  (Ivoudoun  County),  where  the  river  was  broad  but  shallow,  near 
the  scene  of  Evan's  victory  over  the  Federals  in  the  previous  October, 
and  where  Wayne  had  crossed  his  Pennsylvania  brigade  in  marching  to 
the  field  of  Yorktown,  in  1781. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  151 

The  following  military  organizations  were  recruited  wholly 
or  in  part  in  I^oudoun  County  and  mustered  into  the  Confed- 
erate service:  8th  Virginia  Regiment  (a  part  of  Pickett's 
famous  fighting  division),  Loudoun  Guard  (Company  C,  17th 
Virginia  Regiment),  Loudoun  Cavalry  ("Laurel  Brigade"), 
and  White's  Battalion  of  Cavalry  (the  "Comanches,"  25th 
Virginia  Battalion).  Mosby's  command,  the  "Partisan 
Rangers,"  also  attracted  several  score  of  her  patriotic 
citizenry. 

The  sons  of  Loudoun,  serving  in  these  and  other  organiza- 
tions, bore  a  distinguished  part  on  every  crimsoned  field  from 
Pennsylvania  to  the  coast  of  Florida. 

Garnett's  Brigade,  to  which  the  8th  Virginia  regiment 
was  attached,  was  led  into  action  during  the  memorable  charge 
on  the  third  day  of  the  battle  of  Gettysburg.  The  brigade 
moved  forward  in  the  front  line,  and  gained  the  enemy's 
strongest  position,  where  the  fighting  became  hand  to  hand 
and  of  the  most  desperate  character.  It  went  into  action  with 
1,287  men  and  140  officers,  and  after  the  struggle,  of  this 
number,  only  about  300  came  back  slowly  and  sadly  from  the 
scene  of  carnage.  General  Garnett,  himself,  was  shot  from 
his  horse  while  near  the  center  of  the  advancing  brigade, 
within  about  twenty -five  paces  of  the  "stone  fence,"  from 
behind  which  the  Federals  poured  forth  their  murderous  fire. 

The  Loudoun  Rangers  (^Federal) . 

This  volunteer  organization  consisted  of  two  companies  of 
disaffected  Virginians,  all  of  whom  were  recruited  in  the 
German  settlements  northwest  of  Leesburg.  Company  A,  at 
the  outset,  was  commanded  by  Captain  Daniel  M.  Keyes,  of 
Lovettsville,  who  later  resigned  on  account  of  wounds  received 
in  action.  He  was  succeeded  by  Captain  Samuel  C.  Means, 
of  Waterford.  Company  B's  commander  was  Captain  James 
W.  Grubb.  The  total  enlistment  of  each  company  was  120  and 
67 J  respectively.  All  the  officers  and  privates  were  of  either 
German,  Quaker,  or  Scotch-Irish  lineage,  the  first-named  class 
predominating. 


152         ,  HISTORY  OF 

The  command  was  mustered  into  the  Federal  service  at 
Lovettsville,  the  20th  day  of  June,  1862.  Its  historian,  Briscoe 
Goodhart,  a  member  of  Company  A,  in  his  History  of  the 
Loudoun  (Virginia)  Rangers,  has  said  that  it  ''was  an  inde- 
pendent command,  organized  in  obedience  to  a  special  order 
of  the  Honorable  Edwin  M.  Stanton,  Secretary  of  War,  and 
was  at  first  subject  to  his  orders  only,  but  subsequently  merged 
into  the  Eighth  Corps,  commanded  at  that  time  by  the  vener- 
able Major  General  John  Ellis  Wool.     .     .     ." 

The  ** Rangers,"  as  the  name  implies,  were  scouts  and,  in 
this  highly  useful  capacity,  served  the  enemies  of  their  State 
with  shameless  ardor.  But,  as  a  body,  they  fought  few  en- 
gagements and  none  of  a  decisive  nature.  Their  first  and, 
perhaps,  sharpest  encounter  happened  in  and  around  the  old 
Baptist  Church  at  Waterford. 

The  following  absolution  or  justification  is  offered  in  the 
preface  to  the  above-quoted  work: 

"As  the  name  of  their  organization  indicates,  they  came  from  a  State 
which  was  arrayed  in  arms  against  the  authority  of  the  National  Govern- 
ment. No  Governor,  or  Senator,  or  Member  of  Congress  guarded  their 
interests;  nor  was  any  State  or  local  bounty  held  forth  to  them  as  an 
allurement.  Their  enlistment  in  the  Union  Army — their  country's 
army — was  the  spontaneous  outgrowth  of  a  spirit  of  lofty  patriotism. 

"As  they  saw  their  duty  they  were  not  lacking  in  moral  courage  to 
perform  that  duty;  and  with  no  lapse  of  years  shall  we  ever  fail  to  insist 
that  the  principles  for  which  the  Rangers  contended  were  eternally 
right,  and  that  their  opponents  were  eternally  wrong." 

Far  from  being  a  well-ordered  command  with  a  clearly  de- 
fined modus  operandi,  the  two  companies  were  poorly  drilled, 
imperfectly  accoutred,  only  aimlessly  and  periodically  active, 
and,  moreover,  were  on  the  point  of  dissolution  at  the  outset. 

Operating,  for  the  most  part,  independently  and  in  detached 
parties  the  command  offered  no  serious  menace  to  citizens  or 
soldiery,  though  the  latter  were  sometimes  harassed  and 
annoyed  by  them. 

Mosby,  who  had  greatly  desired  and  often  essayed  their 
capture,  was  finally  given  the  opportunity  for  which  he  had 
eagerly  waited.     Learning  that  the  Rangers  were  encamped 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  153 

near  Millville,  W.  Va.  (Keyes'  Switch,  as  it  was  then  called), 
he  dispatched  Captain  Baylor  with  a  detachment  of  horse  to 
that  point. 

Major  Scott  who,  in  I867,  wrote  Partisan  Life  With  Mosby, 
has  this  to  say  of  the  fight  which  followed:  "He  (Baylor) 
took  the  precaution  to  pass  in  between  Halltown  (where  there 
was  a  brigade  of  infantry)  and  the  camp.  When  within  fifty 
yards  of  the  Loudoun  Rangers  the  order  to  charge  was  given. 
Two  of  them  were  killed,  four  wounded,  and  65  taken 
prisoners,  together  with  81  horses  with  their  equipments. 
The  rest  of  the  command  sought  refuge  in  the  bushes.  The 
only  loss  which  Baylor  sustained  was  Frank  Helm,  of  War- 
renton,  who  was  wounded  as  he  charged  among  the  foremost 
into  the  camp." 

The  day  of  the  capture  General  Stevenson,  commanding  at 
Harper's  Ferry,  and  under  whose  orders  the  Rangers  had 
been  acting,  sent  the  following  message  to  General  Hancock 
at  Winchester: 

Harper's  Ferry,  April  6,  186^. 

Mosby  surprised  the  camp  of  the  Loudoun  Rangers  near  Keyes' 
Ford  and  cleaned  ihetn  out.  He  made  the  attack  about  10  a.  m.    .     .     . 

John  D.  Stevenson, 

Brigadier-  General. 

When  Major-General  Hancock,  so  distinguished  in  the  Fed- 
eral Army,  heard  of  Baylor's  exploit  he  laughed  heartily  and 
exclaimed:  "Well,  that  is  the  last  of  the  Loudoun  Rangers." 

As  indeed  it  proved  to  be! 

Mosby^s  Command  in  its  Relationship  to  Loudoun  County. 

From  January,  I863,  until  the  close  of  the  war  Colonel 
Mosby' s  partisan  operations  were  mostly  confined  to  the 
counties  of  Loudoun  and  Fauquier,  this  rich,  pastoral  coun- 
try affording  subsistence  for  his  command  and  the  Blue  Ridge 
a  haven  to  which  to  retreat  when  hard  pressed  by  the  superior 
numbers  that,   from  time  to  time,    were  sent  against  him. 

Here  he  planned  and  executed  most  of  the  daring  coups  that 
45-n 


154  HISTORY  OF 

were  to  win  for  him  international  fame.*  Here  also  his  men 
were  dispersed  and  reassembled  with  marvelous  facility — one 
of  countless  manifestations  of  his  great  original  genius. 
"They  would  scatter  for  safety,  and  gather  at  my  call  like 
the  Children  of  the  Mist,"  was  what  he  wrote  in  after  years. 
Of  all  his  methods  this  has  been  the  least  clearly  understood. 
The  explanation  that  he  has  offered  in  his  War  Reminiscences 
can  be  only  partially  complete;  for  he  could  not,  with  pro- 
priety, point  to  his  personal  magnetism  and  daring  as  the 
dominant  influences,  though  he  must  have  known  that  to  an 
extraordinary  extent  they  were  responsible  for  this  almost 
unparalleled  devotion.  ''The  true  secret,"  he  says,  "was 
that  it  was  a  fascinating  life,  and  its  attractions  far  more  than 
counterbalanced  its  hardships  and  dangers.  They  had  no 
camp  duty  to  do,  which,  however  necessary,  is  disgusting  to 
soldiers  of  high  spirit.  To  put  them  to  such  routine  work  is 
pretty  much  like  hitching  a  race  horse  to  a  plow." 

Many  of  his  followers  were  recruited  in  Loudoun  County. 
A  few  before  the  advent  of  Mosby  had  pursued  peaceable  voca- 
tions; but  the  command  consisted  in  the  main  of  men  who 
had  seen  active  service  in  the  cavalry  and  infantry  regiments, 
but  tiring  of  the  routine  and  discipline  of  the  camp  had  re- 
turned to  their  homes  in  Loudoun  and  adjoining  counties. 
At  times  he  had  with  him  dauntless  spirits  who  had  been 
incapacitated  for  infantry  duty  by  reason  of  wounds  received 
in  action,  some  of  these  carrying  crutches  along  with  them 
tied  to  their  saddle  bows.    At  another  time  he  enrolled  several 


*In  alluding  to  the  famous  "  greenback  raid  "  (October  14,  1864),  in 
which  a  party  of  Rangers  entered  a  train  of  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Rail- 
road, near  Kearneysville,  capturing,  among  other  officers,  Majors  Moore 
and  Ruggles,  Federal  paymasters,  with  their  funds,  Lieutenant  Grogan, 
of  the  Rangers,  has  said  that  the  command,  the  next  day,  "met  at 
Bloomfield,  in  Loudoun  County,  and  examined  into  the  condition  of  our 
sub-U.  S.  Treasury,  and  finding  there  a  net  surplus  of  $168,000,  the 
same  was  divided  among  our  stockholders  (;^2,000  each)  and  circulated 
so  freely  in  Loudoun  that  never  afterwards  was  there  a  pie  or  blooded 
horse  sold  in  that  section  for  Confederate  money." 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  155 

experienced  fighters  who  had  been  absent  from  their  regi- 
ments without  leave  ever  since  the  first  battle  of  Bull  Run — 
a  period  of  nearly  two  years. 

With  this  promiscuous  following,  which  at  no  time  ex- 
ceeded one  hundred  men,  he  instituted  a  long  unbroken  series 
of  successful  strategems,  surprises,  and  night  attacks,  harass- 
ing the  communications  of  the  Federal  armies,  confusing  their 
plans  by  capturing  dispatches,  destroying  supply  trains, 
subjecting  their  outposts  to  the  wear  and  tear  of  a  per- 
petual skirmish,  in  short,  inflicting  all  the  mischief  possi- 
ble for  a  small  body  of  cavalry  moving  rapidly  from  point  to 
point  on  the  communications  of  an  army. 

He  believed  that  by  incessant  attacks  he  could  compel  the 
enemy  either  greatly  to  contract  his  lines  or  to  reinforce  them, 
both  of  which  would  have  been  of  great  advantage  to  the 
Southern  cause.  By  assuming  the  aggressive,  a  rule  from 
which  he  not  once  departed,  he  could  force  the  enemy  to 
guard  a  hundred  points,  leaving  himself  free  to  select  any 
one  of  them  for  attack. 

But  the  theories,  purposes,  and  methods  of  this  peer  of 
partisan  leaders  is  best  explained  by  himself.  Simply  and  un- 
ostentatiously, but  withal  convincingly,  expressed,  they  give 
to  the  man  and  his  deeds  the  unmistakable  semblance  of  fair- 
ness and  legitimacy.  These,  together  with  his  masterly  de- 
fense of  partisan  warfare,  follow  in  modified  and  disconnected 
form: 

"The  military  value  of  a  partisan's  work  is  not  measured  by  the 
amount  of  property  destroyed,  or  the  number  of  men  killed  or  captured, 
but  by  the  number  he  keeps  watching.  Every  soldier  withdrawn  from 
the  front  to  guard  the  rear  of  an  army  is  so  much  taken  from  its  fight- 
ing strength. 

"I  endeavored,  as  far  as  I  was  able,  to  diminish  this  aggressive  power 
of  the  army  of  the  Potomac,  by  compelling  it  to  keep  a  large  force  on 
the  defensive.  I  assailed  its  rear,  for  there  was  its  most  vulnerable 
point.  My  men  had  no  camps.  If  they  had  gone  into  camp,  they 
would  soon  have  all  been  captured.  ...  A  blow  would  be  struck  at 
a  weak  or  unguarded  point,  and  then  a  quick  retreat.  The  alarm  would 
spread  through  the  sleeping  camp,  the  long  roll  would  be  beaten  or  the 


156  HISTORY  OF 

bugles  would  sound  to  horse,  there  would  be  mounting  in  hot  haste  and 
a  rapid  pursuit.  But  the  partisans  generally  got  off  with  their  prey. 
Their  pursuers  were  striking  at  an  invisible  foe.  I  often  sent  small 
squads  at  night  to  attack  and  run  in  the  pickets  along  a  line  of  several 
miles.  Of  course,  these  alarms  were  very  annoying,  for  no  human  being 
knows  how  sweet  sleep  is  but  a  soldier.  I  wanted  to  use  and  consume 
the  Northern  cavalry  in  hard  work.  I  have  often  thought  that  their 
fierce  hostility  to  me  was  more  on  account  of  the  sleep  I  made  them 
lose  than  the  number  we  killed  and  captured." 

*'My  purpose  was  to  weaken  the  armies  invading  Virginia,  by 
harassing  their  rear.  As  a  line  is  only  as  strong  as  its  weakest  point,  it 
was  necessary  for  it  to  be  stronger  than  I  was  at  every  point,  in  order  to 
resist  my  attacks.  .  .  .  It  is  just  as  legitimate  to  fight  an  enemy  in 
the  rear  as  in  front.  The  only  difference  is  in  the  danger.  Now,  to 
prevent  all  these  things  from  being  done,  heavy  detachments  must  be 
made  to  guard  against  them." 

"The  line  that  connects  an  army  with  its  base  of  supplies  is  the  heel 
of  Achilles — its  most  vital  and  vulnerable  point.  It  is  a  great  achieve- 
ment in  war  to  compel  an  enemy  to  make  heavy  detachments  to 
guard  it.     .     .     ." 

"Having  no  fixed  lines  to  guard  or  defined  territory  to  hold,  it  was 
always  my  policy  to  elude  the  enemy  when  they  came  in  search  of  me, 
and  carry  the  war  into  their  own  camps." 

"These  operations  were  erratic  simply  in  not  being  in  accordance 
with  the  fixed  rules  taught  by  the  academies;  but  in  all  that  I  did  there 
was  a  unity  of  purpose,  and  a  plan  which  my  commanding  general 
understood  and  approved. ' ' 

".  .  .  while  I  conducted  war  on  the  theory  that  the  end  of  it  is 
to  secure  peace  by  the  destruction  of  the  resources  of  the  enemy,  with 
as  small  a  loss  as  possible  to  my  own  side,  there  is  no  authenticated  act 
of  mine  which  is  not  perfectly  in  accordance  with  approved  military 
usage.  Grant,  Sherman,  and  Stonewall  Jackson  had  about  the  same 
ideas  that  I  had  on  the  subject  of  war." 

Though  all  his  engagements  were  reported  to  Stuart  till  the 
death  of  that  great  cavalry  leader,  in  May,  1864,  and  after- 
ward to  General  Robert  E.  I^ee,  Mosby  was  allowed  the  free- 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  157 

dom  of  untrammeled  action  in  the  sense  that  the  operations  of 
his  command  were  left  to  his  individual  discretion. 

The  following  militant  verses  were  published  in  a  Southern 
magazine,  soon  after  the  war,  and  won  immediate  popularity: 

Mosby  at  Hamilton. 
By  Madison  Cawein. 

Down  Loudoun  lanes,  with  swinging  reins 

And  clash  of  spur  and  sabre, 
And  bugling  of  battle  horn. 
Six  score  and  eight  we  rode  at  morn 
Six  score  and  eight  of  Southern  born, 

All  tried  in  love  and  labor.  , 

Full  in  the  sun  at  Hamilton, 

We  met  the  South 's  invaders; 
Who,  over  fifteen  hundred  strong, 
'Mid  blazing  homes  had  marched  along 
All  night,  with  Northern  shout  and  song, 

To  crush  the  rebel  raiders. 

Down  Loudoun  lanes  with  streaming  manes 

We  spurred  in  wild  March  weather; 
And  all  along  our  war-scarred  way 
The  graves  of  Southern  heroes  lay, 
Our  guide  posts  to  revenge  that  day. 

As  we  rode  grim  together. 

Old  tales  still  tell  some  miracle 

Of  saints  in  holy  writing — 
But  who  shall  say  why  hundreds  fled 
Before  the  few  chat  Mosby  led. 
Unless  the  noblest  of  our  dead 

Charged  with  us  then  when  fighting. 

While  Yankee  cheers  still  stunned  our  ears, 

Of  troops  at  Harper's  Ferry, 
While  Sheridan  led  on  his  Huns, 
And  Richmond  rocked  to  roaring  guns. 
We  felt  the  South  still  had  some  sons, 

She  would  not  scorn  to  bury. 


158  HISTORY  OF 

Battle  of  Leesburg^  {"'BalVs  Bluf  f)- 

"After  the  first  battle  of  Manassas,  Col.  Bppa  Hunton  had 
been  ordered  to  reoccupy  Leesburg  with  his  regiment,  the 
Eighth  Virginia.  A  little  later  Col.  William  Barksdale's 
Thirteenth  Mississippi,  CoL  W.  S.  Featherstone's  Seventeenth 
Mississippi,  a  battery,  and  four  companies  of  cavalry  under 
Col.  W.  H.  Jenifer  were  sent  to  the  same  place,  and  these 
were  organized  into  the  Seventh  Brigade  of  the  Confederate 
Army  of  the  Potomac,  which,  early  in  August,  was  put  under 
command  of  Brig. -Gen.  Nathan  G.  Evans,  who  had  been 
promoted  for  his  brave  conduct  July  21st.  General  Beaure- 
gard's object  in  locating  this  strong  force  at  Leesburg  was  to 
guard  his  left  flank  from  a  Federal  attack  by  way  of  several 
good  roads  that  led  from  the  fords  of  the  upper  Potomac,  near 
that  town,  directly  to  his  Bull  Run  encampment;  to  watch 
the  large  Federal  force  that  McClellan  had  located  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  Potomac;  to  keep  up  a  connection  with 
the  Confederate  force  in  the  lower  Shenandoah  Valley  by  a 
good  turnpike  that  led  from  Ivcesburg  across  the  Blue  Ridge, 
and  to  save  for  his  army  the  abundant  supplies  of  the  fertile 
County  of  I<oudoun. 

"On  the  15th  of  October  (I86I)  General  Banks'  division  of 
the  Federal  army  was  located  at  Darnestown,  Md.,  about 
fifteen  miles  due  east  from  Leesburg,  with  detachments  at  Point 
of  Rocks,  Sandy  Hook,  Williamsport,  etc.;  while  the  division 
of  Brig. -Gen.  C.  P.  Stone,  composed  of  six  companies  of  cav- 
alry, three  of  artillery,  and  the  infantry  brigades  of  Gens. 
W.  A.  Gorman  and  F.  W.  Lander  and  Col.  E.  D.  Baker,  was 
located  at  Poolesville,  eight  miles  north  of  east  from  Leesburg. 
The  object  in  this  disposition  of  so  large  a  force  was,  not  only  to 
guard  the  right  of  the  big  Federal  army  that  General  McClellan 
was  gathering  at  Washington,  but  especially  to  cover  the  im- 
portant approaches  from  the  northwest  to  Baltimore  and  the 


*  Virginia  Military  History,  by  Jedediah  Hotchkiss. 
t  Also  called  "  Battle  of  Harrison's  Island  "  and  "Battle  of  Conrad's 
Ferry." 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  159 

Federal  city,  particularly  those  from  the  lower  Shenandoah 
Valley  and  northeastern  Piedmont,  Virginia. 

"On  October  19th,  McCall's  Federal  divihion  advanced  to 
Dranesville,  on  the  road  to  Leesburg  and  about  15  miles  from 
that  place,  'in  order  to  cover  the  reconnoissance  made  in  all 
directions  the  next  day;'  and  later.  Smith's  Federal  division 
advanced  along  a  parallel  road  to  the  west,  acting  in  concert 
with  General  McCall,  and  pushed  forward  strong  parties  in 
the  same  direction  and  for  the  same  purpose.  About  7  p.  m. 
of  the  19th,  Stone's  advance  opened  a  heavy  cannonade  on 
the  Confederate  positions  at  Fort  Evans,  on  the  Leesburg 
pike,  and  at  Edwards'  Ferry,  and  at  the  same  time  General 
Evans  heard  heavy  firing  in  the  direction  of  Dranesville.  At 
midnight  General  Evans  ordered  his  whole  brigade  to  the 
front,  along  the  line  of  Goose  Creek,  3  miles  southeast  of  Lees- 
burg, where  he  had  a  line  of  intrenchments,  to  there  await  an 
expected  attack  from  General  McCall,  the  next  morning,  Sun- 
day, October  20th,  as  it  had  been  reported  that  the  Federal 
advance  was  moving  in  force  from  Dranesville  toward  Lees- 
burg. Evans'  scouts  captured  McCall's  courier  bearing  dis- 
patches to  General  Meade,  directing  him  to  examine  the  roads 
leading  to  Leesburg.  The  Federal  batteries  kept  up  a  de- 
liberate fire  during  the  day,  but  no  assault  was  made. 

"On  the  morning  of  the  20th  the  Federal  signal  oflficer  on 
Sugar  Loaf  Mountain,  in  Maryland,  reported  *  the  enemy 
have  moved  away  from  Leesburg,'  This  Banks  wired  to 
McClellan,  whereupon  the  latter  wired  to  Stone,  at  Pooles- 
ville,  that  a  heavy  reconnoissance  would  be  sent  out  that  day, 
in  all  directions,  from  Dranesville,  concluding:  'You  will 
keep  a  good  lookout  upon  Leesburg,  to  see  if  this  movement 
has  the  effect  to  drive  them  away.  Perhaps  a  slight  demon- 
stration on  your  part  would  have  the  effect  to  move  them.' 
McClellan  desired  Stone  to  make  demonstrations  from  his 
picket  line  along  the  Potomac,  but  did  not  intend  that  he 
should  cross  the  river,  in  force,  for  the  purpose  of  fighting. 
Late  in  the  day  Stone  reported  that  he  had  made  a  feint  of 
crossing,  and  at  the  same  time  had  started  a  reconnoissance 


160  HISTORY  OF 

from  Harrison's  Island  toward  I^eesburg,  when  the  enemy's 
pickets  retired  to  intrenchments.  That  'slight  demonstra- 
tion' brought  on  the  battle  of  Ball's  Bluff  on  Monday,  Octo- 
ber 21st.  On  the  morning  of  the  21st,  McCall  retired  from 
Evan's  front  to  his  camp  at  Prospect  Hill,  4  miles  up  the 
river  from  the  Chain  bridge.  From  his  point  of  observation, 
at  the  earthworks  called  'Fort  Kvans,'  to  the  eastward  of 
Leesburg,  overlooking  the  fords  at  Conrad's  and  Edwards* 
ferries  and  Ball's  Bluff,  Evans,  at  6  a.  m.  on  the  21st,  found 
that  the  enemy  of  Stone's  division  had  effected  a  crossing  at 
Edwards'  Ferry  and  at  Ball's  Bluff,  4  miles  above.  He 
promptly  sent  four  companies  from  his  Mississippi  regiments 
and  two  companies  of  cavalry,  under  the  command  of  Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel W.  H.  Jenifer  to  the  assistance  of  Captain  Duff, 
to  hold  the  enemy  in  check  until  his  plan  of  attack  should  be 
developed.  Colonel  Jenifer  immediately  engaged  the  Federal 
advance  and  drove  it  back  toward  Ball's  Bluff. 

*  'The  force  that  had  crossed  at  Harrison's  Island,  about  mid- 
night of  the  20th,  was  part  of  the  command  of  Colonel  Baker, 
some  300  men  under  Col.  Charles  Devens,  of  the  Fifteenth 
Massachusetts.  Its  object  was  to  capture  a  Confederate  camp 
that  had  been  reported  to  be  about  a  mile  from  the  river. 
This  force  advanced  to  an  open  field  surrounded  by  woods, 
where  it  halted  until  it  could  be  joined  by  a  company  from 
the  Twentieth  Massachusetts,  which  had  been  left  on  the 
bluff,  on  the  Virginia  side,  to  protect  the  Federal  return. 
Devens,  at  daybreak,  pushed  forward  with  a  few  men  to 
reconnoiter,  and,  in  person,  went  to  within  sight  of  I^eesburg. 
Thinking  he  had  not  been  discovered  Devens  determined 
to  remain  and  sent  back  to  his  brigade  commander.  Colonel 
Baker,  for  reinforcements.  The  latter  consulted  his  division 
commander,  General  Stone,  and  obtained  permission  to  either 
withdraw  Devens  or  to  send  over  reinforcements  to  him.  He 
promptly  directed  Devens  to  hold  his  position  and  said  that 
he  would  support  him  in  person  with  the  rest  of  his  brigade. 
The  boats  and  flats  that  had  been  provided  for  crossing  the 
Potomac  from  the  Maryland  shore  to  Harrison's  Island  and 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  l6l 

from  the  latter  to  the  Virginia  shore  were  entirely  inadequate, 
and  it  was  nearly  noon  before  Devens'  regiment  of  625  men 
was  closed  up  on  the  Virginia  shore. 

"Convinced  at  about  10  a.  m.  that  the  main  Federal  attack 
would  be  at  Ball's  Bluff,  four  miles  northeast  of  Leesburg, 
Evans  ordered  Colonel  Hunton  with  the  Eighth  Virginia  *  to 
the  support  of  Colonel  Jenifer,  directing  him  to  form  the  line 
of  battle  immediately  in  the  rear  of  Jenifer's  command,  and 
that  the  combined  force  should  then  drive  the  enemy  to  the 
river,  while  he,  General  Evans,  supported  the  right  of  the 
movement  with  artillery.  This  movement  was  made  soon 
after  noon  and  the  opposing  forces  at  once  became  hotly  en- 
gaged, the  Confederates  advancing  on  the  Federals,  who  held  a 
strong  position  in  front  of  the  woods.  Learning,  at  about  this 
time,  that  an  opposing  force  was  gathering  on  his  left  and 
that  he  would  soon  be  vigorously  attacked  by  a  body  of  in- 
fantry that  appeared  in  that  direction  and  by  a  body  of  dis- 
mounted cavalry  that  had  deployed  in  his  front,  and  appre- 
hensive of  being  flanked,  Devens  retired  his  regiment  to  an 
open  space  in  the  woods,  in  front  of  the  bluff,  and  prepared  to 
receive  an  attack.  To  ascertain  about  reinforcements  Devens 
went  back  to  the  bluff  about  2  p.  m. ,  where  he  found  Colonel 
Baker,  who  directed  him  to  form  his  regiment  on  the  right  of 
the  position  that  he  proposed  to  occupy,  while  Baker  placed 
300  of  the  Twentieth  Massachusetts  on  the  left  and  advanced 
in  front  of  these  his  California  regiment,  with  two  guns,  sup- 
ported by  two  companies  of  the  Fifteenth  Massachusetts.  At 
about  the  same  hour  General  Stone  ferried  a  strong  force 
across  the  river  at  Edwards'  Ferry  to  make  a  demonstration 
on  Evans'  right,  leaving  Colonel  Baker  in  command  at  Ball's 
Bluff.  Stone  then  telegraphed  to  McClellan:  'There  has  been 
a  sharp  firing  on  the  right  of  our  line,  and  our  troops  appear 
to  be  advancing  there  under  Baker.  The  left,  under  Gorman, 
has  advanced  its  skirmishers  nearly  one  mile,  and,  if  the  move- 
ment continues  successful,  will  turn  the  enemy's  right.' 

"At  about  2.30  p.  m..  General  Evans,  having  the  advantage 

*The  regiment  in  which  were  several  companies  of  Loudoun  soldiers. 


162  HISTORY  OF 

of  a  concealed,  shorter,  and  inner  line,  seeing  that  the  enemy 
was  being  constantly  reinforced,  ordered  Colonel  Burt,  with 
the  Eighteenth  Mississippi,  to  attack  the  Federal  left,  while 
Hunton  and  Jenifer  attacked  his  front,  holding  the  attack  at 
Edwards'  Ferry  in  check  by  batteries  from  hisintrenchments. 
As  Colonel  Burt  reached  his  position,  the  enemy,  concealed 
in  a  ravine,  opened  on  him  a  furious  fire,  which  compelled 
him  to  divide  his  regiment  and  stop  the  flank  movement  that 
had  already  begun.  At  about  3  P-  ^i.,  Featherstone,  with 
the  Seventeenth  Mississippi,  was  sent  at  a  double-quick  to 
support  Burt's  movement.  Evans  reports:  'He  arrived  in 
twenty  minutes  and  the  action  became  general  along  my  whole 
line,  and  was  very  hot  and  brisk  for  more  than  two  hours,  the 
enemy  keeping  up  a  constant  fire  with  his  batteries  on  both 
sides  of  the  river.  At  about  6  p.  m.  I  saw  that  my  command 
had  driven  the  enemy  to  near  the  banks  of  the  river.  I 
ordered  my  entire  force  to  charge  and  drive  him  into  the  river. 
The  charge  was  immediately  made  by  the  whole  command, 
and  the  forces  of  the  enemy  were  completely  routed,  and 
cried  out  for  quarter  along  his  whole  line.  In  this  charge 
the  enemy  was  driven  back  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet,  and 
many  were  killed  and  wounded  by  this  formidable  weapon. 
In  the  precipitate  retreat  of  the  enemy  on  the  bluffs  of  the 
river,  many  of  his  troops  rushed  into  the  water  and  were 
drowned,  while  many  others,  in  overloading  the  boats,  sunk 
them  and  shared  the  same  fate.  The  rout  now,  about  7 
o'clock,  became  complete,  and  the  enemy  commenced  throw- 
ing his  arms  into  the  river.  .  .  .  At  8  p.  m.  the  enemy 
surrendered  his  forces  at  Ball's  Bluff,  and  the  prisoners  were 
marched  to  Leesburg. ' 

''During  this  action.  Colonel  Barksdale,  with  nine  companies 
of  the  Thirteenth  Mississippi  and  six  pieces  of  artillery,  was 
held  to  oppose  Stone's  movement  from  Edwards'  Ferry  and 
also  as  a  reserve.  After  the  engagement,  Evans  withdrew  all 
his  brigade  to  I^eesburg,  except  Barksdale' s  regiment,  which 
he  left  in  front  of  Edwards'  Ferry. 

"Each  of  the  combatants  had  about  1,700  men  engaged  in 
this  action.     The  Confederates  had  no  artillery  in  the  fight, 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  I63 

while  the  Federals  had  three  light  guns.  Shortly  after  the 
action  became  general,  Colonel  Baker,  passing  in  front  of  his 
command,  was  killed  by  a  sharpshooter,  which  so  demoral- 
ized the  Federals  that  the  surviving  officers  conferred  and 
decided  to  retreat.  This  was  opposed  by  Colonel  Milton 
Cogswell,  of  the  Forty-second  New  York,  who  had  succeeded 
Colonel  Baker  in  command.  He  said  a  retreat  down  the  bluff 
and  across  the  river  was  now  impossible,  and  that  they  must 
cut  their  way  through  the  Confederate  right  to  Edwards' 
Ferry.  He  promptly  gave  orders  to  that  effect,  and  moved 
to  the  front,  followed  by  the  remnants  of  his  own  two  com- 
panies and  a  portion  of  the  California  regiment,  but  not  by 
the  others.  He  was  quickly  driven  back  and  the  whole  Federal 
command  was  forced  to  the  river  bluff  in  great  disorder. 
Just  then  two  companies  of  the  Forty- second  New  York 
landed  on  the  Virginia  shore.  These  Colonel  Cogswell  or- 
dered up  the  bluff  and  deployed  as  skirmishers  to  cover  the 
Federal  retreat,  while  he  advanced  to  the  left  with  a  small 
party,  and  was  almost  immediately  captured.  Colonel  Devens 
escaped  by  swimming  the  river. 

**On  the  morning  of  the  22nd,  Colonel  Barksdale  informed 
General  Evans  that  the  enemy  was  still  in  force  at  Edwards' 
Ferry.  He  was  ordered  to  carefully  reconnoiter  the  Federal 
position,  learn  its  strength  and  make  attack.  This  he  did, 
at  about  2  p.m.,  and  drove  a  superior  force  from  an  intrenched 
position  to  the  bank  of  the  river,  killing  and  wounding  quite  a 
number  of  men.  At  about  sundown,  the  Federals,  having  been 
reinforced  and  holding  rifle-pits,  Barksdale  withdrew  to  Fort 
Evans,  leaving  two  companies  to  watch  his  front.  The  enemy 
recrossed  the  Potomac  during  the  night.  Evans  reported  his 
loss,  in  the  thirteen  hours  of  fight,  on  the  21st,  as  36  killed,* 

*The  Confederate  soldiers  who  fell  in  the  battle  of  Ball's  Bluff  are 
buried  in  Union  Cemetery,  on  the  northern  border  of  Leesburg.  Their 
resting  place  is  marked  by  an  imposing  marble  shaft,  in  honor  of  the 
comrades  of  "the  lost  cause,"  ''wherever  they  lie."  Many  of  the  Union 
soldiers  who  perished  at  Ball's  Bluff  lie  buried  where  they  fell.  Their 
mournful  little  cemetery  was  recently  acquired  by  the  Federal  govern- 
ment and  its  approaches  and  environs  greatly  improved.  The  battlefield 
is  still  one  of  the  chief  points  of  interest  to  visitors  to  central  Ivoudoun. 


164  HISTORY  OF 

117  wounded,  and  2  missing,  from  a  force  of  1,709.  Among 
the  killed  was  the  brave  Colonel  Burt.  The  Federal  losses 
were  returned  at  49  killed,  158  wounded,  and  694  missing. 
General  Evans  claimed  the  capture  of  710  prisoners,  1,500 
stands  of  arms,  3  cannon  and  1  flag. 

"Evans called  on  I<ongstreet  for  reinforcements  when  he 
reported  his  battle  of  the  21st,  thinking  that  20,000  Federals 
were  in  his  front.  Colonel  Jenkins,  with  the  Eighteenth 
South  Carolina  cavalry  and  artillery  was  dispatched  from 
Centreville  in  the  afternoon  of  the  22d,  and  marched  toward 
Leesburg,  through  mud  and  a  driving  rain,  until  midnight, 
when  the  infantry  went  into  bivouac;  but  Captain  C.  M. 
Blackford's  cavalry  and  four  guns  of  the  Washington  artillery 
hurried  forward  all  night  and  came  in  sight  of  lyeesburg 
about  daylight  of  the  23d.  That  morning,  finding  his  men 
much  exhausted,  General  Evans  ordered  three  of  his  regi- 
ments to  fall  back  to  Carter's  mill,  a  strong  position  on  Goose 
Creek,  about  7  miles  southwest  from  I^eesburg,  and  join 
Jenkins,  who  had  been  halted  at  that  place,  leaving  Barks- 
dale  with  his  regiment,  two  pieces  of  artillery  and  some 
cavalry,  as  a  rear  guard  near  Leesburg,  and  Hunton,  with  his 
Eighth  Virginia  and  two  pieces  of  artillery,  on  the  south 
bank  of  Sycoline  Creek,  3  miles  from  Leesburg,  and  sending 
his  cavalry  well  to  the  front  toward  Alexandria." 

Munford's  Fight  at  Leesburg.'^ 

"Having  driven  Pope's  army  to  a  secure  position  behind 
the  defences  of  Washington,  General  Lee  turned  northward 
to  the  Potomac  and  began  the  first  Maryland  campaign. 

"While  this  movement  was  in  progress  Stuart  covered  the 
front  toward  Washington.  He  had  learned  that  an  irregular 
body  of  cavalry  under  a  certain  Captain  Means  was  harassing 
the  citizens  in  the  vicinity  of  Leesburg,  and  on  the  2d  of  Sep- 
tember (1862)  he  sent  Colonel  Munford,  with  the  Second  Vir- 
ginia Cavalry,  to  that  point.  On  approaching  Leesburg,  Mun- 
ford learned  that  it  was  occupied  by  Means'  company  and 

'^Life  and  Campaigns  of  Maj.-Gen.J.  E.  B.  Stuart. 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  l65 

that  he  was  supported  by  about  two  hundred  men  under  Major 
Cole,  of  Maryland.  Munford's  regiment  numbered  only  about 
one  hundred  and  sixty  men,  but,  approaching  Leesburg  by 
an  unexpected  direction,  he  effected  a  surprise,  and  after  a 
heavy  skirmish  completely  routed  Means'  party  and  pursued 
him  to  Waterford,  a  distance  of  seven  miles.  He  captured 
forty-seven  prisoners,  and  killed  or  wounded  twenty." 

Battle  at  Aldie.-^ 

''Early  on  the  morning  of  the  17th  of  June,  I863,  Colonel 
Munford,  with  the  2d  and  3rd  Virginia  Cavalry,  moved  from 
Upperville  through  Middleburg,  and  having  established  his 
picket  posts  east  of  Aldie,  crossed  over  to  Snicker's  Gap 
road  and  proceeded  with  these  two  regiments  to  procure  com 
at  the  house  of  Franklin  Carter,  about  a  mile  distant.  He 
expected  to  encamp  that  night  in  the  vicinity  of  Aldie. 

"Colonel  Williams  C.  Wickham,  with  the  1st,  4th,  and  5th 
Virginia  Cavalry,  the  remaining  regiments  of  the  brigade,  had 
moved  from  Piedmont  through  Middleburg,  and  was  about  to 
place  his  men  in  camp  at  Dover  Mills,  near  Aldie. 

"The  5th  regiment,  Col.  Thomas  L.  Rosser,  which  arrived 
some  little  time  after  the  1st  and  4th,  was  directed  by  Colonel 
Wickham  to  pass  beyond  Dover  Mills,  and  select  a  camp 
nearer  Aldie.  In  so  doing  Colonel  Rosser  encountered  the 
enemy,  who  was  rapidly  driving  back  the  pickets  established 
by  Colonel  Munford. 

"The  force  of  the  enemy  making  this  attack  was  the  2d 
cavalry  division,  commanded  by  Gen.  D.  M.  Gregg,  and  ac- 
companied by  Major-General Pleasonton.  General  Kilpatrick's 
brigade,  consisting  of  the  2d  New  York,  1st  Massachusetts, 
6th  Ohio,  and  4th  New  York  regiments,  supported  by  the  1st 
Maine  Cavalry  from  Col.  J.  J.  Gregg's  brigade,  and  by  Ran- 
dol's  battery, .appears  to  have  done  all  the  fighting.  The  two 
other  brigades  of  General  Gregg's  division  were  closed  up 
within  supporting  distance. 

*Life  and  Campaigns  of  Maj.-Gen.J.  E,  B,  Stuart. 


166  HISTORY  OF 

"The  arrival  of  Rosser's  regiment  was  most  opportune.  By 
an  immediate  sabre  charge  he  drove  back  the  enemy's  ad- 
vance upon  their  main  body  in  the  town  of  Aldie.  Having  re- 
lieved the  pressure  on  the  pickets,  Rosser  stationed  his  sharp- 
shooters, under  Capt.  R.  B.  Boston,  on  the  right  of  the  Snick- 
ersville  road,  where  a  number  of  haystacks  afforded  some 
protection,  and  held  the  remainder  of  his  small  regiment 
ready  for  their  support.  Colonel  Munford,  in  the  meantime, 
arrived  in  person  and  stationed  Lieut.  William  Walton,  of  the 
2d  Virginia  Cavalry,  with  the  reserve  picket,  fifteen  men,  be- 
hind a  stone  wall  on  the  left  of  the  Snickersville  road  with 
orders  to  hold  his  position  against  any  odds  until  the  2d  and 
3d  regiments  could  come  to  his  assistance.  In  the  meantime, 
and  while  Colonel  Wickham  was  stationing  the  1st  and  4th 
regiments  and  Breathed's  battery  to  dispute  any  advance  on 
the  Middleburg  road,  Rosser,  single-handed,  had  met  and  re- 
pulsed two  charges  which  were  made  upon  Captain  Boston's 
squadron;  and  believing  that  he  could  be  maintained  there 
with  advantage,  had  ordered  Boston  to  hold  his  position  at 
all  hazards.  The  result  proved  that  this  disposition  was  un- 
fortunate, for  during  the  subsequent  heavy  fighting  Boston 
was  so  far  advanced  as  to  be  beyond  the  reach  of  support  and 
he  and  his  squadron  were  captured. 

"During  all  this  time  there  was  no  force  on  the  left  of  the 
Snickersville  road,  except  the  picket  posted  by  Munford  be- 
hind the  stone  wall.  Munford,  therefore,  moved  Rosser's 
regiment  and  the  4th  Virginia  Cavalry,  with  one  gun  from 
Breathed's  battery,  so  as  to  command  this  road,  leaving 
Colonel  Wickham  with  the  rest  of  the  guns  and  the  1st  Vir- 
ginia Cavalry  on  the  Middleburg  road. 

"In  the  meantime  the  enemy  pressed  heavily  on  Lieutenant 
Walton.  He  had  repulsed  two  mounted  charges,  but  being 
outflanked  by  dismounted  men,  had  been  withdrawn  about 
fifty  yards  behind  a  house  and  orchard,  in  which  position  he 
commanded  the  only  opening  through  which  the  enemy  could 
attack.  Here  three  distinct  charges  were  met  and  repulsed  in 
counter-charges  by  the  5  th  Virginia  Cavalry,  by  the  3d  squad- 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  167 

ron  of  the  4th  regiment,  led  by  I^ieut.  A.  D.  Payne,  and  by 
the  2d  and  5th  squadrons  of  the  same  regiment,  led  by  Capt. 
W.  B.  Newton.  These  were  the  only  squadrons  of  this  regi- 
ment present  at  this  battle,  the  1st  and  4th  squadrons  having 
been  detailed  early  in  the  day  to  accompany  General  Stuart. 
In  each  of  these  charges  the  enemy  had  suffered  severely  at 
the  hands  of  Lieutenant  Walton's  sharpshooters,  who  poured 
volleys  into  their  flanks  as  they  passed  him  in  advancing  and 
retiring. 

"As  Walton's  party  was,  however,  evidently  small,  the 
enemy  determined  to  dislodge  him,  and  was  preparing  a  con- 
siderable force  for  another  attack ,  when  the  2d  and  3d  Vir- 
ginia Cavalry  reached  the  field.  Two  squadrons  of  sharp- 
shooters were  at  once  dismounted  and  placed  on  the  left  of  the 
road — the  squadron  from  the  2d  regiment  under  Captains 
Breckinridge  and  Graves,  that  from  the  3d  regiment  under 
Capt.  George  D.  White.  Their  line  was  advanced  to  the 
stone  wall  from  which  Lieutenant  Walton  had  been  with- 
drawn. Colonel  Munford  now  felt  that  his  position  was  se- 
cure against  an  attack  of  cavalry,  and  there  was  nothing  he 
more  desired  than  that  the  enemy  should  wear  himself  out 
against  it.  His  flanks  were  secured  by  Little  River  and  its 
tributaries.  The  enemy  must  necessarily  attack  his  front. 
The  road  by  which  it  was  approached  was  worn,  as  it  as- 
cended the  hill,  into  deep  gullies,  which  compelled  an  attack 
in  column  of  fours  and  prevented  the  enemy  from  spreading 
out  his  front.  Munford' s  strong  party  of  sharpshooters  com- 
manded  the  road.  They  were  stationed  in  an  enclosed  field, 
with  a  stone  wall  in  their  front,  a  post  and  rail  fence  on  their 
right,  and  another  fence  on  their  left.  The  fences  to  the 
rear  were  thrown  down,  so  as  to  give  the  cavalry  access  to 
the  field.  Munford  felt  that  unless  his  cavalry  failed  in  their 
duty,  his  dismounted  men  were  perfectly  secure. 

"The  2d  Virginia  Cavalry,  led  by  Lieut.-Col.  J.  W.  Watts, 
now  charged  the  advancing  enemy,  who  had  penetrated  be- 
yond the  position  of  the  sharpshooters.  The  heads  of  the 
columns  met  in  the  narrow  road  in  a  hand-to-hand  sabre  fight. 


168  HISTORY  OF 

While  this  was  in  progress,  Capt.  Jesse  Irving  threw  down 
the  fence  on  the  right  of  the  road,  and,  bringing  his  squad- 
ron to  the  front,  opened  fire  on  the  enemy's  left  flank.  Capt. 
W.  W.  Tebbs  executed  a  similar  movement  on  the  left  of  the 
road,  while  the  sharpshooters  were  all  the  time  firing  into  the 
enemy's  rear.  Their  attack  was  completely  broken,  and 
their  leading  squadron  almost  destroyed.  Another  support 
moved  up  during  the  confusion,  but  was  met  and  repulsed 
by  Colonel  Rosser.  In  this  fight  lyieutenant-Colonel  Watts 
was  wounded  and  permanently  disabled.  The  command  of 
the  2d  regiment  devolved  on  Major  Cary  Breckinridge,  who 
moved  the  regiment  off  to  the  right  to  reform,  carrying  with 
him  Col.  Louis  P.  De  Cesnola  and  the  colors  of  his  regiment, 
the  4th  New  York  Cavalry. 

"During  all  this  time  Captain  Boston,  of  the  5th  Virginia 
Cavalry,  had  been  holding  the  haystacks  far  in  advance  of 
his  friends,  where  Colonel  Rosser  had  placed  him  wdth  such 
stringent  orders.  He  was  beyond  the  reach  even  of  a  recall, 
but  had  been  doing  his  utmost  to  aid  in  the  fight.  He  was  now 
charged  by  the  6th  Ohio  Cavalry,  under  Lieutenant-Colonel 
William  Stedman;  and  after  losing  three  of  his  officers,  in- 
cluding his  junior  captain,  and  a  third  of  his  men  killed  and 
wounded,  he  surrendered  to  the  odds  brought  against  him. 

"The  Federal  cavalry  were  determined  to  carry  the  position 
if  possible,  and  another  charge  was  speedily  organized.  This 
was  met  by  the  3d  Virginia  Cavalry,  led  by  Col.  T.  H. 
Owens,  who  took  the  road,  supported  on  his  right  by  the  2d 
regiment  and  on  his  left  by  the  5th.  The  sabre  was  the 
weapon  used,  and  the  enemy  was  again  driven  back.  Colonel 
Munford  pronounced  this  the  most  spirited  charge  of  the  day. 
Colonel  Owens,  however,  pressed  his  success  too  far.  He 
drove  the  enemy  almost  to  the  village  of  Aldie,  w^here  he  was 
charged  by  a  fresh  regiment  and  briven  back,  losing  many  of 
the  prisoners  he  had  taken  and  some  of  his  own  men.  Major 
Henry  Carrington,  of  the  3d  regiment,  was  captured  at  this 
point.     Colonel  Munford  says  in  his  report: 

"  'Captain  Newton,  having  rallied  his  small  command  and  a 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  169 

good  many  men  from  other  commands,  was  again  ready  to 
relieve  Colonel  Owens  as  he  fell  back,  and  by  a  timely  charge 
repelled  another  effort  to  flank  him.  As  the  enemy  came  up 
again  the  sharpshooters  opened  upon  him  with  terrible  effect 
from  the  stone  wall,  which  they  had  regained,  and  checked  him 
completely.  I  do  not  hesitate  to  say  that  I  have  never  seen 
as  many  Yankees  killed  in  the  same  space  of  ground  in  any 
fight  I  have  ever  seen  or  on  any  battlefield  in  Virginia  that  I 
have  been  over.  We  held  our  ground  until  ordered  by  the 
major-general  commanding  to  retire,  and  the  Yankees  had 
been  so  severely  punished  that  they  did  not  follow.  The 
sharpshooters  of  the  5th  were  mostly  captured,  this  regiment 
suffering  more  than  any  other. ' 

"Colonel  Munford  reported  the  capture  of  138  prisoners. 
The  number  of  killed  and  wounded  is  unknown.  His  own 
total  loss  was  119,  of  which  the  5th  Virginia  Cavalry  lost  58, 
mostly  from  Captain  Boston's  squadron." 

Duffie  at  Middleburg y^ 

''On  this  same  afternoon  (June  17,  1 863)  events  of  con- 
siderable importance  occurred  at  Middleburg,  where  Stuart 
had  established  his  headquarters  for  the  day. 

* 'Early  in  the  morning  Col.  A.  N.  Duffie,  with  the  1st 
Rhode  Island  Cavalry,  had  crossed  the  Bull  Run  Mountain 
at  Thoroughfare  Gap.  His  orders  directed  him  to  encamp  at 
Middleburg  on  the  night  of  the  1 7th  and  to  proceed  the  next 
day  toward  Noland's  Ferry,  extending  his  march-to  the  west 
as  far  as  Snickersville.  These  orders  seem  to  have  contem- 
plated a  somewhat  extended  scout  by  this  regiment  on  the 
left  flank  of  General  Gregg's  division — a  hazardous  move- 
ment in  the  presence  of  an  enterprising  enemy.  Colonel  Duffie 
reached  .Thoroughfare  Gap  at  9.3O  a.  m.  and  was  somewhat 
delayed  in  crossing  the  mountain  by  the  picket  from  Cham- 
bliss'  command.  By  11  o'clock,  however,  he  was  fairly  on  his 
way  to  Middleburg.    At  4  o'clock  p.  m.  he  struck  the  pickets 

*Life  and  Campaigns  of  Maj.-Gen.J.  E.  B.  Stuart. 

45-13 


170  HISTORY  OF 

which  Scaart  had  established Jf or  his  own  safety  outside  the 
town  and  drove  them  in  so  quickly  that  Stuart  and  his  staff 
were  compelled  to  make  a  retreat  more  rapid  than  was  con- 
sistent with  dignity  and  comfort.  Having  with  him  no  force 
adequate  to  contest  the  ground  with  Duffle's  regiment,  Stuart 
retired  toward  Rector's  Cross  Roads.  Munford  was  notified 
of  his  danger,  and  directed  to  withdraw  from  Aldie  and  Rob- 
ertson and  Chambliss  were  ordered  to  move  immediately  upon 
Middleburg. 

"The  only  hope  for  Duffle's  regiment  now  lay  in  an  imme- 
diate advance  upon  Aldie,  where  he  might  have  created  con- 
siderable commotion  by  attacking  the  rear  of  the  1st  Virginia 
Cavalry  on  the  Middleburg  road.  But  he  did  not  know  this 
and  his  orders  were  positive,  requiring  him  to  encamp  for  the 
night  at  Middleburg.  He  therefore  made  the  best  of  his  situa- 
tion by  dismounting  one-half  of  his  regiment  behind  stone 
walls  and  barricades,  hoping  that  he  might  be  able  to  hold  his 
position  until  reinforced  from  Aldie,  whither  he  sent  Capt. 
Frank  Allen  to  make  known  his  situation  at  brigade  head- 
quarters. Captain  Allen  reached  Aldie,  after  encountering 
many  difflculties,  at  9  o'clock  p.  m.   He  says  in  his  report: 

"  'General  Kilpatrick  informed  me  that  his  brigade  was  so 
worn  out  that  he  could  not  send  any  reinforcements  to  Mid- 
dleburg, but  that  he  would  report  the  situation  of  our  regi- 
ment to  General  Gregg.  Returning,  he  said  that  General 
Gregg  had  gone  to  state  the  facts  to  General  Pleasonton,  and 
directed  me  to  remain  at  Aldie  until  he  heard  from  General 
Pleasonton.    I  remained,  but  received  no  further  orders.'  " 

*'Thus  Colonel  Duffle  was  left  to  meet  his  fate.  At  7 
o'clock  in  the  evening  he  was  attacked  by  Robertson's  brigade. 
His  men  fought  bravely  and  repelled  more  than  one  charge 
before  they  were  driven  from  the  town,  retiring  by  the  same 
road  upon  which  they  had  advanced.  Unfortunately  for  Duffle 
this  road  was  now  closed  by  Chambliss'  brigade,  which  sur- 
rounded him  during  the  night  and  captured,  early  the  next 
morning,  the  greater  part  of  those  who  had  escaped   from 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  171 

Robertson  on  the  previous  evening.  Colonel  DuflSe  himself 
escaped  capture  and  reached  Centreville  early  in  the  after- 
noon with  four  of  his  ofl&cers  and  twenty-seven  men.  He  re- 
ports the  loss  in  his  regiment  at  20  officers  and  248  men. 
This,  however,  was  an  exaggeration  of  the  calamity,  for 
other  officers  besides  himself  had  taken  to  the  woods  and  suc- 
ceeded in  making  their  way  back  to  the  Federal  lines,  on  the 
I8th  and  l9th." 

The  Sacking  of  Loudoun. 

FKDKRAI^  OPERATIONS  AGAINST  MOSBY  IN   I^OUDOUN  COUNTY. 

Mosby's  unrelenting  aggressiveness  caused  the  Northern 
generals  much  annoyance  and  perplexity.  Consequently 
many  ingenious  traps  were  laid  for  him,  but  to  no  purpose. 
Into  some  he  walked  with  unsuspecting  boldness,  though 
contriving  to  fight  his  way  to  safety  again,  and  usually,  in 
so  doing,  inflicting  greater  loss  on  the  enemy  than  would  be 
sustained  by  his  own  command. 

These  reiterated  and,  at  times,  disastrous  failures  having 
demonstrated  the  futility  of  all  covert  attempts.  General 
Grant,  and  later,  General  Sheridan,  felt  driven  to  the  adop- 
tion of  measures  that  were  destined  to  entail  much  suffering 
and  loss  on  the  guiltless  and  non-combatant  element  of  Lou- 
doun's population.  Under  date  of  August  l6,  l864,  Grant 
despatched  the  following  arbitrary  order  to  General  Sheridan: 

"If  yo'J  can  possibly  spare  a  division  of  cavalry,  send  them  through 
Loudoun  County  to  destroy  and  carry  off  the  crops,  animals,  negroes, 
and  all  men  under  fifty  years  of  age  capable  of  bearing  arms.  In  this 
way  you  will  get  many  of  Mosby's  men.  All  male  citizens  under  fifty 
can  fairly  be  held  as  prisoners  of  war,  and  not  as  citizen  prisoners.  If 
not  already  soldiers,  they  will  be  made  so  the  moment  the  rebel  army 
gets  hold  of  them." 

Sheridan  straightway  ordered  all  the  cavalry  of  the  Eighth 
Illinois,  then  the  best  regiment  of  its  kind  in  the  Army  of  the 
Potomac,  to  concentrate  at  Muddy  Branch,  preparatory  to 
beginning  operations  against  Mosby  in  Loudoun  County.  In 
his  orders  to  General  Auger  he  told  that  officer  to  extermi- 
nate as  many  as  he  could  of  ** Mosby's  gang." 


172  HISTORY  OF 

The  command  broke  camp  at  Muddy  Branch  August  20, 
and  crossed  the  Potomac  with  650  men,  the  special  object  of 
the  scout  being,  as  stated  in  orders  to  Major  Waite,  "to  break 
up  and  exterminate  any  bands  or  parties  of  Mosby's,  White's, 
or  other  guerillas  -which  may  be  met." 

Viewed  in  the  light  of  a  communication  from  Sheridan  to 
Halleck,  dated  November  26,  1864,  this  expedition  seems 
not  to  have  been  even  moderately  successful.  In  it  he  said: 
"I  will  soon  commence  work  on  Mosby.  Heretofore  I  have 
made  no  attempt  to  break  him  up,  as  I  would  have  employed 
ten  men  to  his  one,  and  for  the  reason  that  I  have  made  a 
scape-goat  of  him  for  the  destruction  of  private  rights.  Now 
there  is  going  to  be  an  intense  hatred  of  him  in  that  portion 
of  this  Valley,  which  is  nearly  a  desert.  I  will  soon  com- 
mence on  I^oudoun  County,  and  let  them  know  there  is  a  God 
in  Israel.     ..." 

In  his  determination  to  rid  himself  of  his  troublesome 
enemy,  Sheridan,  the  next  day,  issued  the  following  orders 
to  Major-General  Merritt,  commanding  the  First  Cavalry 
Division : 

'•You  are  hereby  directed  to  proceed  to-morfow  morning  at  7  o'clock 
with  the  two  brigades  of  your  division  now  in  camp  to  the  east  side  of 
the  Blue  Ridge  via  Ashby's  Gap,  and  operate  against  the  guerillas  in 
the  district  of  country  bounded  on  the  south  by  the  line  of  the  Manassas 
Gap  Railroad  as  far  east  as  White  Plains,  on  the  east  by  the  Bull  Run 
range,  on  the  west  by  the  Shenandoah  River,  and  on  the  north  by  the 
Potomac.  This  section  has  been  the  hot-bed  of  lawless  bands,  who  have, 
from  time  to  time,  depredated  upon  small  parties  on  the  line  of  army 
communications,  on  safeguards  left  at  houses,  and  on  all  small  parties 
of  our  troops.  Their  real  object  is  plunder  and  highway  robbery.  To 
clear  the  country  of  these  parties  that  are  bringing  destruction  upon 
the  innocent  as  well  as  their  guilty  supporters  by  their  cowardly  acts, 
you  will  consume  and  destroy  all  forage  and  subsistence,  burn  all  barns 
and  mills  and  their  contents,  and  drive  off  all  stock  in  the  region  the 
boundaries  of  which  are  above  described.  This  order  must  be  literally 
executed,  bearing  in  mind,  however,  that  no  dwellings  are  to  be  burned 
and  that  no  personal  violence  be  offered  to  the  citizens.  The  ultimate 
results  of  the  guerilla  system  of  warfare  is  the  total  destruction  of  all 
private  rights  in  the  country  occupied  by  such  parties.  This  destruc- 
tion may  as  well  commence  at  once,  and  the  responsibility  of  it  must 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  173 

rest  upon  the  authorities  at  Richmond,  who  have  acknowledged  the 
legitimacy  of  guerilla  bands.  The  injury  done  this  army  by  them  is 
very  slight.  The  injury  they  have  indirectly  inflicted  upon  the  people 
and  upon  the  rebel  army  may  be  counted  by  millions.  The  Reserve 
Brigade  of  your  division  will  move  to  Snickersville  on  the  29th. 
Snickersville  should  be  your  point  of  concentration,  and  the  point  from 
which  you  should  operate  in  destroying  toward  the  Potomac.  Four 
days'  subsistence  will  be  taken  by  the  command.  Forage  can  be 
gathered  from  the  country  through  which  you  pass.  You  will  return 
to  your  present  camp,  via  Snicker's  Gap,  on  the  5th  day." 

In  addition  to  Merritt's  three  brigades,  Colonel  Stagg  was 
ordered  to  send  out  four  regiments. 

*  *'The  Federals  separated  into  three  parties,  one  of  which 
went  along  the  Bloomfield  road  and  down  Loudoun  in  the 
direction  of  the  Potomac;  another  passed  along  the  Piedmont 
pike  to  Rectortown,  Salem,  and  around  to  Middleburg,  while 
the  main  body  kept  along  the  turnpike  to  Aldie,  where  they 
struck  the  Snickersville  pike.  Thus  they  scoured  the  country 
completely  from  the  Blue  Ridge  to  the  Bull  Run  Mountains. 

''From  Monday  afternoon,  November  28th,  until  Friday 
morning,  December  2nd,  they  ranged  through  the  beautiful 
Valley  of  Loudoun  and  a  portion  of  Fauquier  county,  burn- 
ing and  laying  waste.  They  robbed  the  people  of  everything 
they  could  destroy  or  carry  off — horses,  cows,  cattle,  sheep, 
hogs,  etc. ;  killing  poultry,  insulting  women,  pillaging  houses, 
and  in  many  cases  robbing  even  the  poor  negroes. 

''They  burned  all  the  mills  and  factories,  as  well  as  hay, 
wheat,  corn,  straw,  and  every  description  of  forage.  Barns 
and  stables,  whether  full  or  empty,  were  burned. 

"At  Mrs.  Fletcher's  (a  widow),  where  the  hogs  had  been 
killed  for  her  winter's  supply  of  meat,  the  soldiers  made  a 
pile  of  rails  upon  which  the  hogs  were  placed  and  burned. 
They  even  went  to  the  Poor  House  and  burned  and  destroyed 
the  supplies  provided  for  the  helpless  and  dependent  paupers. 
On  various  previous  occasions,  however,  the  Alms  House  had 
been  visited  by  raiding  parties,  so  that  at  this  time  there  was 

*  Mosby's  Rangers,  by  James  J.  Williamson. 


174  HISTORY  OF 

but  little  left,  but  of  that  little  the  larger  portion  was  taken. 
"Colonel  Mosby  did  not  call  the  command  together,  there- 
fore there  was  no  organized  resistance,  but  Rangers  managed 
to  save  a  great  deal  of  live  stock  for  the  farmers  by  driving 
it  off  to  places  of  safety. ' ' 

Home  Life  During  the  War. 

In  Loudoun,  as  everywhere  in  every  age,  the  seriousness 
of  war  was  not  fully  realized  until  the  volunteer  soldiery,  fol- 
lowing a  short  season  of  feverish  social  gayety,  interspersed 
with  dress  parades  and  exhibition  drills,  had  departed  for 
their  respective  posts.  Immediately  and  with  one  accord 
those  left  behind  settled  themselves  to  watch  and  wait  and 
work  and  pray  for  the  absent  ones  and  the  cause  they  had  so 
readily  championed. 

When  few  slaves  were  owned  by  a  family  the  white  boys, 
too  young  for  service  in  the  army,  worked  with  them  in  the 
fields,  while  the  girls  busied  themselves  with  household 
duties,  though,  at  times,  they,  too,  labored  in  the  open.  In 
families  owning  no  slaves  the  old  men,  cripples,  women,  and 
children  were  forced  to  shoulder  the  arduous  labors  of  the 
farm. 

Stern  necessity  had  leveled  sexual  and  worldly  distinc- 
tions, and  manual  labor  was,  at  times,  performed  by  all  who 
were  in  the  least  physically  fitted  for  it.  All  classes  early  be- 
came inured  to  makeshifts  and  privations,  though  they  man- 
aged in  some  unselfish  manner  to  send,  from  time  to  time, 
great  quantities  of  clothing,  meats,  and  other  supplies  to  the 
soldiers  in  the  field  and  their  wounded  comrades  in  the  army 
hospitals. 

The  intense  devotion  of  lyoudoun  women  to  the  Confederate 
cause  was  most  irritating  to  a  certain  class  of  Federal  officers 
in  the  armies  that  invaded  Northern  Virginia.  They  seemed 
to  think  that  through  their  military  prowess  they  had  con- 
quered  entrance    into    Southern    society,    but    the  women 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  175 

repulsed  them  at  every  turn  and  quite  effectually  checked  their 
presumptuous  advances. 

The  women  of  all  classes  played  and  sang  Confederate  airs 
on  every  occasion,  and,  though  ordered  by  the  military  au- 
thorities to  desist,  with  consummate  daring  they  usually  per- 
sisted until  a  guard  of  soldiers  had  been  detailed  to  enforce 
the  order.  The  Federal  officers  who  acted  in  a  gentlemanly 
manner  toward  the  non-combatants  were  accused  by  their 
rude  fellows  and  by  ruder  newspaper  correspondents  of  being 
''wound  round  the  fingers  of  the  rebel  women,"  who,  they 
were  sure,  had  some  cherished  object  in  view. 

The  women,  without  question,  had  much  the  harder  task. 
The  men,  in  active  service  in  the  field,  were  reasonably  sure 
that  their  families  were  safe  at  home  and,  in  the  feverish  ex- 
citement of  war,  felt  no  concern  for  themselves,  while,  on  the 
other  hand,  the  women  lived  in  hourly  dread  of  direful  news 
from  the  front,  and,  moreover,  were  burdened  with  labors 
and  cares  more  irksome  and  harassing  than  had  ever  been 
borne  by  the  absent  males. 

The  music  and  songs  that  were  popular  just  before  and 
during  the  war  attest  the  vacillating  temper  of  the  people. 
Joyous  airs  were  at  first  heard,  these  growing  contemptuous 
and  defiant  as  the  struggle  approached,  then  stirring  war 
songs  and  hymns  of  encouragement.  But  as  sorrow  followed 
sorrow  until  all  were  stricken;  as  wounds,  sickness,  impris- 
onment, and  death  of  friends  and  relatives  cast  an  ever- 
lengthening  shadow  over  the  spirits  of  the  people;  as  hopes 
were  dashed  by  defeat,  and  the  consciousness  came  that,  per- 
haps, after  all  the  cause  was  losing,  the  iron  entered  into  the 
souls  of  the  people.  The  songs  became  sadder,  while  in  the 
churches,  where  the  doctrines  of  faith  and  good  works  were 
earnestly  propounded,  little  else  was  heard  than  the  soul- 
comforting  hymns  and  the  militant  songs  of  the  older  church- 
men. The  promises  were,  perhaps,  more  emphasized  and  a 
deeply  religious  feeling  prevailed  among  the  home-workers 
for  the  cause. 


176  HISTORY  OF 

PierponVs  Pretentious  Administration. 

On  December  7,  I863,  the  legislature  of  the  "Restored 
Government  of  Virginia"  held  its  first  meeting  in  the 
chambers  of  the  city  council  at  Alexandria,  which  munici- 
pality became  the  seat  of  a  Union  administration  in  the  Old 
Dominion,  after  Governor  Pierpont's  removal  from  Wheeling, 
W.  Va.,  where,  by  unqualified  political  trickery,  he  and  his 
unauthorized  following  had  effected  the  establishment  of  a 
new  Union  commonwealth  out  of  the  ruins  of  Confederate 
Virginia .  Six  senators  were  present ,  representing  the  counties 
of  Norfolk,  Accomac,  Fairfax,  Alexandria,  and  Loudoun,  and 
the  city  of  Norfolk.  Prince  William,  Northampton,  Alexan- 
dria, Loudoun,  and  Norfolk  counties  were  represented  by 
seven  delegates.  J.  Madison  Downey,  of  Loudoun,  was  elected 
speaker  of  the  house  of  delegates. 

This  tiny  mouth-piece  of  Virginia  Unionists  had  naturally 
few  important,  or  even  ordinary,  questions  of  legislation  to 
decide.  The  most  important  was  a  provision  for  the  amend- 
ment of  the  State  constitution  with  relation  to  its  bearing  on 
the  slavery  question.  *' Everybody,"  said  Governor  Pier- 
pont  in  his  message,  "loyal  or  disloyal,  concedes  that  slavery 
in  the  State  is  doomed.  Then  acting  upon  this  concession, 
call  a  convention  of  loyal  delegates,  to  alter  the  State  consti- 
tution in  this  particular,  and  declare  slavery  and  involuntary 
servitude,  except  for  crime,  to  be  forever  abolished  in  the 
State." 

A  new  constitution  which  should  supercede  that  of  I851 
and  express  the  Union  sentiments  of  the  Potomac  legislators, 
was  accordingly  drafted.  Nominations  of  delegates  to  the 
constitutional  convention  were  made  in  January,  1864.  By 
the  terms  of  the  act  relative  thereto,  any  voter  in  the  State 
who  had  not  adhered  by  word  or  act  to  the  Confederacy  since 
September  1,  186I,  might  be  chosen  a  member  of  the  conven- 
tion; all  "loyal"  citizens,  who  had  not  given  aid  or  comfort 
to  the  Confederacy  since  January  1,  I863,  possessed  the  right 
to  vote. 


lyOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  177 

Elections  were  held  January  22,  I864.  Very  little  interest 
was  manifested  by  the  people,  as  was  evidenced  by  the  ridicu- 
lously small  vote  everywhere  polled.  LoudoufV s  nominees, 
Dr.  J.  J.  Henshaw,  J.  Madison  Downey,  and  E.  R  Giver, 
were  elected  by  a  mere  handful  of  voters. 

The  convention  met  at  Alexandria  February  I3,  I864,  with 
fifteen*  delegates  present  from  twelve  counties.  Le  Roy  G. 
Edwards,  of  Portsmouth,  was  elected  president  and  W.  J. 
Cowing,  secretary.  A  number  of  radical  changes  in  the  old 
constitution,  framed  by  legitimate  authority  in  ante-bellum 
days,  were  consummated  during  the  two  months'  session  of 
this  convention. 

The  Alexandria  government  held  sway  very  nearly  two 
years.  The  legislature  met  for  its  second  session  December  5 , 
1864,  and  re-elected  J.  Madison  Downey,  of  Loudoun  County, 
speaker  of  the  house  of  delegates. 

The  Pierpont  government  was  not  in  itself  of  great  impor- 
tance. Its  influence  extended  to  only  a  dozen  counties  and 
three  cities  and,  "under  the  shadow  of  bayonets,  it  was  the 
rule  of  a  few  aliens  in  the  midst  of  a  generally  hostile  popu- 
lation. Men  at  the  time  and  since  have  laughed  at  its  legiti- 
mist pretenses."  It  would  have  been  summarily  dismissed  by 
the  people  but  for  the  protection  afforded  it  by  the  Federal 
armies.  Thus  it  appears  that  the  "Restored  Government  of 
Virginia"  was  not  based  upon  the  consent  and  approval  of 
the  governed.  Yet,  suited  to  a  policy  of  expediency  and 
aggression,  it  was,  with  quivering  and  unseemly  eagerness, 
recognized  as  the  legal  government  of  the  State  hy  the 
Lincoln  administration. 

Emancipation. 

A  significant  event  of  the  war  was  the  issuance  by  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  of  his  celebrated  emancipation  proclamation. 
This  highly  important  measure,  promulgated  on  New  Year's 
day,  1863,  sounded  the  death-knell  of  slavery,  an  institution 
that,  in  the  South,   had  seemed  commercially  indispensable. 

*It  should  be  noted  that  Loudoun  County  furnished  three  of  this 
number. 


178  HISTORY  OF 

The  tidings  spread  rapidly  through  Loudoun  producing, 
however,  no  change  in  the  amicable  relations  existing  be- 
tween the  white  and  colored  races.  In  all  sections  of  the 
South  some  apprehension  was  at  first  felt  lest  the  negroes  be 
tempted  by  Federal  rewards  to  insurrection  and  the  state 
militias  be  required  to  suppress  outbreaks. 

The  people  of  Loudoun,  of  course,  shared  in  these  early 
misgivings,  but  here,  as  elsewhere,  the  negroes,  as  a  whole, 
manifested  no  outward  signs  of  disaffection.  History  must 
record  to  their  credit  and  praise  that  while  actual  warfare 
was  being  waged  on  the  soil  of  Loudoun  they  quietly  awaited 
the  final  issue  of  the  fiery  struggle. 

Entire  communities  of  women  and  children  were  left  in 
their  charge,  while  all  able-bodied  white  men  were  away  on 
the  battlefield,  and  the  trust  was  faithfully  kept.  Instances 
of  criminal  acts  were  so  rare  that  at  this  period  none  are 
recalled,  and  while  this  fidelity  is  proof  of  the  peaceable 
character  of  the  negro,  it  is  also  evidence  for  their  owners 
that  slavery  had  produced  no  personal  hostilities  between  the 
two  races  in  Loudoun  County,  and  that  the  treatment  of  the 
negro  by  his  owner  under  the  law  had  been  such  as  to  main- 
tain between  them  personal  attachment  and  mutual  confidence. 
Many  negroes  accompanied  their  owners  to  the  seat  of  war, 
not  to  take  part  in  battle,  but  to  serve  in  semi-military  duties 
without  exposure  to  danger.  Some  of  them  marched  in 
Maryland  and  Pennsylvania  with  the  armies  of  Lee,  volun- 
tarily returning,  although  they  might  have  remained  in  the 
free  States  without  hindrance.  They  are  still  proud  of  the 
conduct  of  their  race  in  those  days  of  anxiety  and  peril. 

The  proclamation  of  President  Lincoln  was  regarded  in 
Virginia  as  a  strictly  political  war  measure,  designed  to  place 
the  cause  of  war  distinctly  upon  the  sole  question  of  slavery 
for  an  effect  to  be  produced  upon  foreign  countries  and  with 
the  purpose  of  making  use  of  negroes  as  soldiers  in  the  Fed- 
eral army.  The  issue  of  negro  freedom  had  not  been  distinctly 
made  until  this  proclamation  created  it.  Hitherto  it  had  been 
understood  that,  at  the  furthest,  the  Federal  authorities  would 


I.OUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  179 

insist  onlj'  on  restriction  of  slavery  to  the  limits  where  it 
already  existed  and  a  gradual  emancipation  upon  payment  of 
the  value  of  slaves  held  at  the  beginning  of  the  war.  But  now 
it  was  settled  that  the  United  States  proposed  to  enforce  by 
arms  an  instantaneous  emancipation  without  compensation. 

Close  of  the  War. 

The  half-clad  and  impoverished  southern  armies,  after  four 
years  of  valiant  fighting,  were  no  longer  able  to  withstand 
the  superior  numbers  that  had  confronted  them  with  merci- 
less regularity  in  every  important  conflict  of  the  war,  and,  in 
April,  1865,  the  struggle  ceased  with  the  complete  subjuga- 
tion of  the  Southland. 

All  that  the  States-rights  supporters  had  prophesied  would 
be  accomplished  if  unresisted;  all  that  the  Unionists  had  in- 
dignantly denied  to  be  the  objects  of  the  war  was  accom- 
plished: the  South  was  conquered,  State  sovereignty  repudi- 
ated, the  slaves  were  freed,  and  the  recognition  of  negro 
political  equality  forced  upon  the  nation. 

Neighborhood  strifes  and  animosities  had  been  engendered 
in  every  village  and  hamlet,  and  in  nearly  every  household 
mothers  wept  for  the  lost  darlings  asleep  in  their  unmarked 
graves.  The  women  and  children,  hearing  with  a  shock  of 
the  surrender,  experienced  a  terrible  dread  of  the  incoming 
armies.  The  women  had  been  enthusiastic  for  the  Confeder- 
ate cause;  their  sacrifices  had  been  incalculable,  and  to  many 
the  disappointment  and  sorrow  following  defeat  were  more 
bitter  than  death.  The  soldier  had  the  satisfaction  of  having 
fought  in  the  field  for  his  opinions  and  it  was  easier  for  him 
to  abide  by  the  decision  of  arms. 

But  the  terms  of  peace  had  scarcely  been  signed  when  the 
great  popular  heart  of  the  State  swelled  with  generous  and 
magnanimous  rivalry  in  an  effort  to  repair  the  past.  The 
soldiers  who  had  fought  and  striven  under  the  successful 
banners  of  the  Union  came  back  with  no  bitterness  in  their 
hearts,  with  no  taunts  on  their  lips.  The  war-worn  exiles  of 
the  Southern  army,  long  before  formal  permission  had  been 


180  HISTORY  OF 

given  by  either  the  State  or  Federal  Government,  were  sum- 
moned home  and  received  with  open  arms  and  affectionate 
greetings  by  both  the  Union  and  States-rights  men.  The  peo- 
ple of  the  entire  State  seemed  to  remember  with  sorrowful 
pride  the  noble  men  who  had  died  gallantly  in  the  ranks  of 
either  army.  Over  their  faults  was  thrown  the  mantle  of  the 
sweet  and  soothing  charities  of  the  soldier's  grave;  and,  on 
all  sides,  there  was  manifested  unstinted  admiration  for  the 
valor  with  which  they  had  borne  the  dangers  and  privations 
of  the  war. 

RECONSTRUCTION. 

After  the  Surrender. 

If  the  era  of  Reconstruction  which  followed  the  tragic 
drama  of  civil  war  lacked  the  fierce  element  of  bloodshed,  it 
was  none  the  less  painful  and  protracted.  It  was  a  gloomy 
period  through  which  the  people  of  Loudoun,  in  common 
with  other  communities  of  the  Southland,  were  compelled  to 
pass,  and  there  was  no  appeal  and  no  alternative  save 
submission. 

The  conditions  in  the  South  in  this  decade  were  radically 
different  from  those  in  the  North.  As  a  result  of  the  war,  the 
markets  of  the  South  were  destroyed,  investments  in  slaves 
were  lost,  and  land  improvements  deteriorated.  The  close  of 
the  war  found  the  planters  bankrupt,  their  credit  destroyed, 
and  agriculture  and  all  business  paralyzed  by  lack  of  working 
capital.  Vast  areas  of  land  went  out  of  cultivation,  the  re- 
ported acreage  of  farm  land  in  all  the  Southern  States  was 
less  in  I87O  than  in  i860,  and  the  total  and  average  values  of 
land  everywhere  decreased. 

The  paroled  Confederate  soldier  had  returned  to  his  ruined 
farm  and  set  to  work  to  save  his  family  from  extreme  want. 
For  him  the  war  had  decided  two  questions — the  abolition  of 
slavery,  and  destruction  of  State  sovereignty.  Further  than 
this  he  did  not  expect  the  political  effects  of  the  war  to 
extend.    He  knew  that  some  delay  would  necessarily  attend 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  I8l 

the  restoration  of  former  relations  with  the  central  govern- 
ment, but  political'  proscription  and  humiliation  were  not 
anticipated. 

No  one  thought  of  further  opposition  to  Federal  authority; 
the  results  of  the  war  were  accepted  in  good  faith,  and  the  peo- 
ple meant  to  abide  by  the  decision  of  arms.  Naturally,  there 
were  no  profuse  expressions  of  love  for  the  triumphant  North, 
but  the  people  in  general  manifested  an  earnest  desire  to  leave 
the  past  behind  them  and  to  take  their  places  and  do  their 
duty  as  citizens  of  the  new  Union.  Many  persons  were  dis- 
posed to  attribute  their  defeat  to  the  will  of  the  Almighty. 
Others  believed  that  fate,  destinj^  or  Providence  had  frowned 
upon  the  South,  and  this  state  of  mind  made  them  the  more 
ready  to  accept  as  final  the  results  of  the  war. 

Such  was  the  state  of  feeling  in  the  first  stage,  before  there 
was  any  general  understanding  of  the  nature  of  the  questions 
to  be  solved  or  of  the  conflicting  policies.  News  from  the 
outside  world  filtered  through  slowly;  while  the  whole  County 
lay  prostrate,  breathless,  exhausted,  resting.  Little  interest 
was  evinced  in  public  questions;  the  long  strain  had  been 
removed,  and  the  future  was  a  problem  too  bewildering  even 
to  be  considered  yet  awhile.  The  people  settled  down  into  a 
lethargy,  seemingly  indifferent  to  the  events  that  were  crowd- 
ing one  upon  another,  and  exhibiting  little  interest  in  govern- 
ment and  politics. 

There  was  a  woeful  lack  of  good  money  in  the  County  and 
industry  was; paralyzed.  The  gold  and  silver  that  remained 
was  carefully  hoarded,  and  for  months  none  was  in  circulation 
except  in  the  towns.  The  people  had  no  faith  in  paper  money 
of  any  description  and  thought  that  greenbacks  would  become 
worthless  in  the  same  way  as  had  Confederate  currency.  All 
sense  of  values  had  been  lost,  which  fact  may  account  for  the 
fabulous  and  fictitious  prices  obtaining  in  the  South  for  sev- 
eral years  after  the  war,  and  the  liberality  of  appropriations 
of  the  first  legislatures  following  the  surrender. 

With  many. persons  there  was  an  almost  maddening  desire 
for  the  things  to  which  they  had  once  been  accustomed,  the 


182  HISTORY  OF 

traders  and  speculators  now  placing  them  in  tempting  array 
in  the  long-empty  store  windows. 

People  owning  hundreds  of  acres  of  land  often  were  as 
destitute  as  the  poorest  negro.  The  majority  of  those  having 
money  to  invest  had  bought  Confederate  securities  as  a  patri- 
otic duty,  and  in  this  way  much  of  the  specie  had  been  drawn 
from  the  County. 

Nearly  all  the  grist-mills  and  manufacturing  establishments 
had  been  destroyed,  mill-dams  cut,  ponds  drained,  and  rail- 
road depots,  bridges,  and  trestles  burned.  All  farm  animals 
near  the  track  of  the  armies  had  been  carried  away  or  killed 
by  the  soldiers,  or  seized  after  the  occupation  by  the  troops. 
Horses,  mules,  cows,  and  other  domestic  animals  had  almost 
disappeared  except  in  the  secluded  districts.  Many  farmers 
had  to  plough  with  oxen.  Farm  buildings  had  been  dis- 
mantled or  burned,  houses  ruined,  fences  destroyed,  corn, 
meat,  and  other  food  products  taken. 

In  the  larger  towns,  where  something  had  been  saved  from 
the  wreck  of  war,  the  looting  by  Federal  soldiers  was  shame- 
ful. Pianos,  curios,  pictures,  curtains,  and  other  household 
effects  were  shipped  North  by  the  Federal  ofl&cers  during  the 
early  days  of  the  occupation.  Gold  and  silver  plate  and 
jewelry  were  confiscated  by  the  "bummers"  who  were  with 
every  command.  Abuses  of  this  kind  became  so  flagrant  that 
the  Northern  papers  condemned  the  conduct  of  the  soldiers, 
and  several  ministers,  among  them  Henry  Ward  Beecher, 
rebuked  the  practice  from  the  pulpit. 

The  best  soldiers  of  the  Federal  army  had  demanded  their 
discharge  as  soon  as  fighting  was  over,  and  had  immediately 
left  for  their  homes.  Those  who  remained  in  the  service  in 
the  State  were,  with  few  exceptions,  very  disorderly  and 
kept  the  people  in  terror  by  their  lobberies  and  outrages. 

Land  was  almost  worthless,  many  of  the  owners  having  no 
capital,  farm  animals,  or  implements.  Labor  was  disorgan- 
ized, and  its  scant  product  often  stolen  by  roving  negroes  and 
other  marauders.  The  planters  often  found  themselves  amid 
a  wilderness  of  land  without  laborers. 


IvOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  iS} 

'■?■  p^Frotn  this  general  gloom  and  despair  the  young  people  soon 
partially  recovered,  and  among  them  there  was  much  social 
gayety  of  a  quiet  sort.  For  four  years  the  young  men  and 
young  women  had  seen  little  of  each  other,  and  there  had 
been  comparatively  few  marriages.  Now  that  they  were  to- 
gether again,  these  nuptials  soon  became  more  common  than 
conditions  seem  to  have  warranted. 

This  revival  of  spirits  did  not  extend  to  the  older  people, 
who  were  long  recovering  from  the  shock  of  grief,  and  strain 
of  war,  much  that  had  made  life  worth  living  being  lost  to 
them  forever. 

Co7iduct  of  the  Freedmen. 

Nearly  every  slaveholder,  returning  home  after  the  fall  of 
the  Confederacy,  assembled  his  remaining  negroes  and  for- 
mally notified  them  of  their  freedom,  and  talked  with  them 
concerning  its  entailed  privileges,  responsibilities,  and  limi- 
tations. The  news  had,  of  course,  reached  them  through 
other  channels,  but  they  had  loyally  awaited  the  home-com- 
ing of  their  masters,  to  whom  they  looked  for  a  confirmation 
of  the  reports.  Steady  employment  at  a  fixed  wage  was 
offered  most  of  them,  and,  except  in  the  vicinity  of  the  towns 
and  army  posts,  where  they  were  exposed  to  alien  influences, 
the  negroes  usually  chose  to  remain  at  their  work. 

Many  were  satisfied  with  the  old  slavery  quarters  while 
others,  for  the  taste  of  freedom  that  was  afforded,  established 
homes  of  their  own  at  near-by  points.  There  were  two  things 
which  the  negroes  of  the  South  felt  must  be  done  before  they 
could  be  entirely  free:  They  must  discard  their  masters'  names 
and  leave  the  old  plantations  if  only  for  a  few  days  or  weeks. 

Among  the  most  contented  and  industrious  there  was  much 
restlessness  and  neglect  of  work.  Hunting  and  fishing  and 
frolics  were  the  order  of  the  day.  Nearly  every  man  acquired, 
in  some  way,  a  dog  and  gun  as  badges  of  freedom.  It  was  quite 
natural  that  the  negroes  should  want  a  prolonged  holiday  for 
the  enjoyment  of  their  new-found  freedom;  and  it  is  really 


184  HISTORY  OF 

Strange  that  any  of  them  worked,  for  there  obtained  an  al- 
most universal  impression— the  result  of  the  teachings  of  the 
negro  soldiers  and  Freedmen's  Bureau  officials— that  the 
Government  would  support  them  in  idleness.  But  in  the  re- 
mote districts  this  impression  was  vague.  The  advice  of  the 
old  plantation  preachers  held  many  to  their  work,  and  these 
did  not  suffer  as  did  their  brothers  who  flocked  to  the  towns. 

Neither  master  nor  freedman  knew  exactly  how  to  begin 
anew  and  it  was  some  time  before  affairs  emerged  from  the 
chaotic  state  into  which  the  war  had  plunged  them.  The  aver- 
age planter  had  little  or  no  faith  in  free  negro  labor,  yet  all 
who  were  now  able  were  willing  to  give  it  a  trial.  The  more 
optimistic  land-owners  believed  that  the  free  negro  could  in 
time  be  made  an  efficient  laborer,  in  which  case  they  were 
willing  to  admit  that  the  change  might  prove  beneficial  to 
both  races.  At  first,  however,  no  one  knew  just  how  to  work 
the  free  negro;  innumerable  plans  were  devised,  many  tried, 
and  few  adopted. 

The  new  regime  differed  but  little  from  the  old  until  the 
fall  of  1865,  when  the  Freedmen's  Bureau,  aided  by  the  negro 
soldiers  and  white  emissaries,  had  filled  the  minds  of  the 
credulous  ex-slaves  with  false  impressions  of  the  new  and 
glorious  condition  that  lay  before  them.  Then,  with  the  ex- 
tension of  the  Bureau  and  spread  of  the  army  posts,  many 
of  the  negroes  became  idle,  neglected  the  crops  planted  in  the 
spring,  and  moved  from  their  old  homes  to  the  towns  or 
wandered  aimlessly  from  place  to  place. 

Upon  leaving  their  homes  the  blacks  collected  in  gangs  at 
the  cross-roads,  in  the  villages  and  towns,  and  especially  near 
the  military  posts.  To  the  negro  these  ordinary  men  in  blue 
were  beings  from  another  sphere  who  had  brought  him  free- 
dom, a  something  he  could  not  exactly  comprehend,  but 
which,  he  was  assured,  was  a  delightful  state. 

Upon  the  negro  women  often  fell  the  burden  of  supporting 
the  children,  to  which  hardship  were  traceable  the  then 
common  crimes  of  foeticide  and  child  murder.  The  small 
number  of  ^children  during  the  decade  of  Reconstruction  was 


LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA.  l85 

generally  remarked.  Negro  women  began  to  flock  to  the 
towns;  how  ihey  lived  no  one  can  tell;  immorality  was 
general  among  them.  The  conditions  of  Reconstruction  were 
unfavorable  to  honesty  and  morality  among  the  negroes,  both 
male  and  female. 

Their  marriage  relations  were  hardly  satisfactory,  judged  by 
white  standards.  The  legislatures  in  1865-1866  had  declared 
slave  marriages  binding.  The  reconstructionists  denounced 
this  as  a  great  cruelty  and  repealed  the  laws.  Marriages  were 
then  made  to  date  from  the  passage  of  the  Reconstruction 
Acts.  As  many  negro  men  had  had  several  wives  before  that 
date  they  were  relieved  from  the  various  penalties  of  deser- 
tion, bigamy,  adultery,  etc.  Some  seized  the  opportunity  to 
desert  their  wives  and  children  and  acquire  new  help-meets. 
While  much  suffering  resulted  from  the  desertion,  as  a  rule, 
the  negro  mother  alone  supported  the  children  better  than 
did  the  father  who  stayed. 

Negro  women  accepted  freedom  with  even  greater  serious- 
ness than  did  the  men,  and  were  not  always,  nor  easily, 
induced  to  again  take  up  the  familiar  drudgery  of  field  labor 
and  domestic  service.  To  approximate  the  ease  of  their 
former  mistresses,  to  wear  fine  clothes  and  go  often  to  church 
were  their  chief  ambitions.  Negro  women  had  never  been  as 
well-mannered,  nor,  on  the  whole,  as  good  natured  and  cheer- 
ful as  the  negro  men.  Both  sexes,  during  Reconstruction, 
lost  much  of  their  native  cheerfulness;  the  men  no  longer 
went  singing  and  shouting  to  their  work  in  the  fields;  some 
of  the  blacks,  especially  the  women,  became  impudent  and 
insulting  in  their  bearing  toward  the  whites. 

As  a  result  of  certain  pernicious  alien  influences  there  soon 
developed  a  tendency  to  insolent  conduct  on  the  part  of  the 
younger  negro  men,  who  seemed  convinced  that  civil  be- 
havior and  freedom  were  incompatible.  With  some  there  was 
a  disposition  not  to  submit  to  the  direction  of  their  employ- 
ers, and  the  negro's  advisers  warned  him  against  the  "efforts 
of  the  white  man  to  enslave"  him.     Consequently,   he  very 


186  '    HISTORY  OF  LOUDOUN  COUNTY,  VA. 

often  refused  to  enter  into  contracts  that  called  for  any  as- 
sumption of  responsibility  on  his  part,  and  the  few  agree- 
ments to  which  he  became  a  party  had  first  to  be  ratified  by 
the  Bureau.  As  he  had  no  knowledge  of  the  obligation  of 
contracts,  he  usually  violated  them  at  pleasure. 

The  negroes,  massed  in  the  towns,  lived  in  deserted  and 
ruined  houses  or  in  huts  built  by  themselves  of  refuse  lumber. 
They  were  very  scantily  clothed  and  their  food,  often  insuffi- 
cient and  badly  cooked,  if  cooked  at  all,  was  obtained  by 
begging,  stealing,  or  upon  application  to  the  Bureau.  Taking 
from  the  whites  was  not  considered  stealing,  but  was  "Spilin' 
de  Gypshuns. ' ' 

The  health  of  the  negroes  was  injured  during  the  period 
I865-I875.  In  the  towns  the  standard  of  living  was  low, 
sanitary  arrangements  were  bad,  and  disease  killed  large  num- 
bers and  permanently  injured  the  negro  constitution. 

Following  the  military  occupation  of  the  State  the  negroes, 
young  and  old,  were  seized  with  an  overmastering  desire  for 
book  learning.  This  seeming  thirst  for  education  was  not 
rightly  understood  at  the  North;  it  was,  in  fact,  more  a  de- 
sire to  imitate  the  white  master  and  obtain  formerly  forbidden 
privileges  than  any  real  yearning  due  to  an  understanding  of 
the  value  of  education.  The  negro  hardly  knew  the  signifi- 
cance of  the  bare  word,  but  the  northern  people  gave  him 
credit  for  an  appreciation  not  yet  altogether  true  even  of 
whites. 

CONCLUSION. 

No  occurrences  of  extreme  historic  value  mark  the  career 
of  Loudoun  since  the  days  of  Reconstruction,  and  the  seem- 
ingly abrupt  conclusion  to  which  the  reader  has  now  arrived 
is  not  thought  incompatible  with  the  plan  of  this  work,  which 
in  no  single  instance  has  contemplated  the  inclusion  of  any 
but  the  most  momentous  events.  Besides,  existing  conditions 
have  received  protracted  mention  in  the  preceding  descriptive 
and  statistical  departments  where  appear  evidences  of  the 
County's  present  vast  wealth  and  resources,  numberless 
charms  and  recent  marvelous  development. 


3RCULATIPN  DEPARTMENT 

^am  Library 

14  il»rjLi    Ij^xT 
RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 

Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


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General  Library 

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